_1626225142.jpg)
LAS VEGAS – Jake Paul acknowledged Saturday that Tommy Fury comes from a reputable fighting family.
Paul still doesn’t think Tyson Fury’s younger half-brother has the vast experience in boxing that his upcoming opponent would like people to believe. Despite that Paul has only four professional fights on his own record, Fury’s inexperience is one of the primary advantages Paul feels he’ll have in their eight-round cruiserweight fight December 18 at AMALIE Arena in Tampa, Florida.
Paul promoted their Showtime Pay-Per-View main event without Fury because Fury had to return home to England to tend to a family matter. That didn’t prevent Paul (4-0, 3 KOs) from eviscerating Fury from afar with a poem full of insults before the press conference ended at a restaurant inside Resorts World Las Vegas.
During the press conference, Paul explained to moderator Claudia Trejos that Fury (7-0, 4 KOs) simply isn’t on his level.
“Yeah, look, I mean, Tommy claims to have been doing this his whole life and he has a amateur career,” Paul said. “And he’s been around it – that is true. But he hasn’t worked as hard as me, you know? I see a green guy who hasn’t sparred enough times and has only been put in there with opponents that were meant to lose. This is his first real test, where his opponent isn’t some guy that’s just gonna flop over. And, you know, you’re gonna see that. You’re gonna see a fighter who is a virgin, in my opinion. He has no idea what he’s getting himself into. This is his first time under the big lights, on the big stage, and he’s gonna crack under pressure.”
Paul, 24, and Fury, 22, will fight at a contracted catch weight of 192 pounds next month at the home venue of the NHL’s Tampa Bay Lightning.
Fury defeated Anthony Taylor by unanimous decision in a four-round bout on the undercard of Paul’s most recent victory over Tyron Woodley on August 29 at Rocket Mortgage FieldHouse in Cleveland. All three judges scored each round for Fury, 40-36, but he didn’t dominate a much shorter, lighter opponent who mostly had competed in mixed martial arts before he fought Fury.
Taylor’s lack of experience aside, he might’ve been a step up in competition for Fury in the undefeated fighter’s seventh pro bout. Before he beat Taylor (0-2), Fury’s first six opponents took an abysmal combined record of 14-174-5 into their fights with Fury.
Paul, meanwhile, produced his most impressive win when he out-pointed Woodley, a 39-year-old former UFC welterweight champion, by split decision in their eight-round main event August 29.
Woodley, who made his pro boxing debut, was the first opponent to take Paul the distance. The Westlake, Ohio, native knocked out each of his first three opponents – YouTube rival Ali Eson Gib in the first round, retired NBA point guard Nate Robinson in the second round and retired UFC welterweight Ben Askren, Woodley’s friend, in the first round since making his pro debut in January 2020.
Keith Idec is a senior writer/columnist for BoxingScene.com. He can be reached on Twitter @Idecboxing.