In a recent podcast appearance, UFC’s Colby Covington has taken a jab at YouTube star-turned-boxer Jake Paul, claiming that all of Paul’s fights have been staged and rigged. Covington, known for his brash and controversial personality, didn’t hold back in his criticism of the younger Paul brother.
According to Covington, Jake Paul is “juiced up” and has been using performance-enhancing drugs, referring to him as a “lab project” and accusing both him and his brother Logan of being “juiced up.” Covington alleges that Paul is taking “every chemical known to man” to gain an unfair advantage in his boxing bouts.
Covington went on to claim that all of Paul’s fights, including his recent exhibition bout against boxing legend Mike Tyson, have been pre-recorded and edited to make Paul look more impressive than he actually is. Covington stated, “At first, all that footage is not live footage. I can promise you that. Mike Tyson’s camp, they had that footage filmed from a couple of years ago. So it doesn’t look like that right now. And that’s definitely not. How is it in pads? That’s from years prior.”
The UFC fighter didn’t stop there, accusing Paul of deliberately seeking out smaller and weaker opponents to create the illusion of being a tough fighter. Covington mocked Paul’s early boxing matches, saying, “He had like a 70 point advantage. And you think you’re tough because of that? Yeah. That doesn’t make you tough just because you’re beating up little guys and being a bully.”
Covington also claimed that Paul’s fights are choreographed, with pre-arranged signals and knockouts. He cited an instance where Paul allegedly gave a hand signal before knocking out his opponent, suggesting that the entire sequence was scripted.
Finally, Covington issued a direct challenge to Paul, stating that the YouTuber-turned-boxer would never dare to fight him in a real, unscripted bout. “What do you do if I just talk about you? He would never fight me. He only wants to fight guys that are over the hill in their forties and sixties, like Mike Tyson. You know, I’ve seen Jake out mine. He knows who Dad is. He knows who the king of Miami is,” Covington boasted.
Covington’s comments have reignited the ongoing debate surrounding the legitimacy of Jake Paul’s boxing endeavors.
While Paul has faced criticism from some quarters for his choice of opponents and showmanship, his supporters argue that he is bringing much-needed attention and excitement to the sport of boxing.
Whether Covington’s claims hold any truth or are simply an attempt to generate controversy and publicity remains to be seen.