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Jake Paul’s sparring partners reveal how good he is in the ring as YouTuber prepares to fight ex-UFC star Tyron Woodley
JAKE PAUL has divided opinion since he burst on to the boxing scene in polarising fashion.
But behind the scenes, from the YouTuber's first white collar fight in 2018 heading into his fifth professional bout, he has put his efforts into becoming a fully fledged prizefighter.
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He beat online rival 'AnEsonGib', ex-NBA star Nate Robinson, 37, and retired UFC welterweight Ben Askren, 37, all by knockout.
Then on August 29, he won against ex-UFC champion Tyron Woodley over eight rounds.
Paul, 24, was due to fight boxer Tommy Fury, 22, this weekend in Florida, but after the Brit pulled out injured, Woodley, 39, signed as a replacement on late notice.
Ahead of the rematch, SunSport spoke exclusively to those with an insight on Paul's abilities, having shared the ring with him.
Jake Bostwick, 18-10 MMA fighter
Bostwick, 32, was earlier in the year invited into Paul's Miami training base to give a feel of how an experienced MMA fighter moved in the ring.
And the Brit - also a Bare Knuckle Fighting Championship star - was left shocked by Paul's dedication to the sweet science.
He said: "I genuinely rate his boxing, I rate his work ethic and I rate how comfortable he is in there with someone of my calibre or anyone else he's working with.
"I hit him with some clean shots, he didn't care, threw some shots back, slipping, moving, his jab is good.
"He's not just this stupid person people think he is who runs his mouth, he is super polite, the dude was like, 'please, thank you', he shook my hand.
"He's very respectful. He runs his mouth and a lot of people don't like that but he's got nothing to lose, he doesn't give a s***.
"He's got money behind him, he's got his friends behind him and if you understand who he is, he's pretty cool."
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Robin Safar, 14-0 light-heavyweight
Safar was asked by his trainer - and friend of Paul's head coach BJ Flores - to help out with sparring last year.
The heavy-handed puncher sparred Paul before he beat Robinson last November, on the returning Mike Tyson's undercard.
Safar, 29, said: "He's got good speed and good reactions. He's naturally born with speed, explosiveness and reactions, that's what you're born with.
"I feel like when I sparred him, he was developing his ring IQ, he was trying to think in the ring.
"He's a good kid and he's got ambition for what he's doing, he's determined and I believe anybody can do anything in life, no matter who you are or what your background is.
"Jake is still green, but for being green he's good. I think he's really good."
Paul has only gone the distance once, but Safar revealed he had developed knowhow between the ropes.
He explained: "He's really good for a YouTuber, he's a smart kid because he wouldn't be in the position he is today if he wasn't.
"In boxing, you've got to have a brain and I know Jake's got it.
"If he can use his IQ the way he does outside of boxing, in the ring, and add the determination and ambition, he can be really good."
Ahmed Elbiali, 21-1 light-heavyweight
Elbiali was also on hand to help Paul in his preparation for Robinson and the pair sparred once.
He admits to holding back on the novice, but noticed some potential in the millionaire vlogger under the guidance of ex-cruiserweight contender Flores.
Elbiali, 31, said: "Jake's athletic and powerful, but you can't compare him to seasoned professionals, there is no comparison.
"He seems relaxed and composed which is really good. He has a great right hand, great right hand, very strong, to the body or head.
";He used his jab well and he listens to BJ well.
"BJ is a good fighter, a good coach, he knows the sport very well and he's passing on a lot of knowledge to Jake too.
"Jake truly, truly, truly, does listen to BJ and he truly does love the sport of boxing and he really believes what he's saying, he's not bulls***ing.
"And that's where I respect it, a man with passion is unstoppable."
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Jean Pascal, 20-1 light-heavyweight, 35–6–1 (1)
After Paul and his brother Logan moved to Puerto Rico, they were regularly training with Pascal, a former world champion.
And the light-heavyweight compared the two brothers and their differing styles.
Pascal, 39, said: "Logan is more natural, he's a gifted athlete, a naturally-gifted athlete.
"Jake Paul is more technical, he relies more on his technique, he has good technique. It's two different styles but both brothers are good.
"I was like a lot of people at the beginning, thinking these guys are just YouTubers, Jake and Logan.
"But to be in camp with them, to see them training hard everyday, training like world-class boxers, I was surprised and very, very shocked.
"They earned my respect because of that, I've seen them in the gym like every single day and they have love for our sport.
"I think it's good for boxing that these guys bring some eyeballs into the sport as more people are going to watch the fight because of them."
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Muhsin Cason, 9-0 cruiserweight
Cason, the brother to ex-heavyweight champion Hasim Rahman, has formerly sparred Paul's YouTube rival KSI.
Despite that, he is a friend of Paul's assistant trainer J'Leon Love and was called into sparring in Puerto Rico for the Woodley rematch.
Cason, 28, said: “The thing is with Jake, he has more experience than even me when it comes to the crowds.
“Even though I’m 9-0, Jake has more experience dealing with crowds, because he’s fought on very big stages, I’m only getting towards that.
“As far as the sparring, the sparring is great. I will say Jake is a very tough cookie, he’s not a slouch, he’s not just a ‘YouTube boxer’, this man is coming to fight.
“I’m not going to give a prediction but Jake is going to surprise the world.
“And the fact that Jake has just started and has only been boxing for a short amount of time, I think you will see what J’Leon and BJ Flores have done with him.”
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Anthony Taylor, 7-5 MMA fighter
Taylor helped Paul in sparring before his wins over Askren and Woodley, and will feature on this weekend's card against Nate Diaz's team-mate Chris Avila.
The former MMA fighter, who lost to Fury in August, has not been in camp with Paul this time around, but is full of praise for the celebrity fighter.
Taylor, 32, said: "Jake has the power to knock you out and knock you down.
"I’ve been fighting Jake for a long time when I was in camp with him for three months.
“Jake has what it takes to be a world champion in the future. And when I say that, it’s because of the work ethic, the student mentality.
“It’s his never-give-up attitude, always wanting to get better. He eats good, he works good. That’s the mentality he has, he has the mindset of a boxer.
“People can say, ‘Oh, he’s just a YouTuber’, but who cares? Let him be a YouTuber, that’s something he’s always done, but his career now is boxing.
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“Jake is getting better, he’s getting stronger, faster, wiser, his boxing IQ was displayed against Tyron Woodley.”
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