EDDIE HEARN would ‘love’ to promote a fight between Jake Paul and Tony Bellew.
And he admitted the thought of Paul getting ‘chinned would be exciting’ to watch.
Hearn told DAZN: “I’d love to promote it.
“Anytime you can promote a fight where you can see Jake Paul get chinned would be exciting.
“Jake Paul just rubs everyone up the wrong way, but I do like what he’s doing.
“People who’ve given so much to boxing, physically, emotionally and mentally, will find what he’s said insulting.
“I just laugh, but for someone like Tony, who’s dedicated his life to the sport, it doesn’t sit well with those guys.
“Hopefully, they can bump into each other, and we can see what happens.”
Bellew, 39, hit out at Paul online, after the YouTuber-turned prizefighter claimed he is ‘carrying the sport of boxing’.
And the ex-cruiserweight champion slammed the American for failing to fight a pro boxer in his 5-0 career so far.
Bellew, who retired in 2018, said: “First of all, I’ve got no hate or malice towards Jake Paul, crack on, do what you’re doing, it’s great.
“But in no way shape or form can you claim to carry my sport you absolute f***ing muppet, he hasn’t even fought a boxer yet.
“So how can you claim to be carrying the sport when you haven’t fought someone who comes from my sport, it’s unbelievable!
“I don’t like the fact it’s labelled a boxing match because he’s not facing a boxer.”
Tommy Fury, 22, was set to be Paul’s first opponent with prior pro boxing experience.
But Fury was forced to pull out with a broken rib and bacterial chest infection, with Tyron Woodley filling in as his replacement.
Paul, 24, had beaten Woodley, 39, only four months earlier on points, but knocked out the ex-UFC champion in round six of their rematch.
It added to KO’s over YouTuber ‘AnEsonGib’, ex-NBA player Nate Robinson, 37, and retired UFC welterweight Ben Askren, 37.
But without any of those being boxers, Bellew urged Paul to fight UFC legend Anderson Silva, 46, who at least has a 2-1 record in the ring.
He said: “If he really wants to fight a boxer, I can tell you someone he can face, Anderson Silva.
“Anderson Silva is an MMA guy, so he’s not a traditional boxer, but, he has beaten a boxer and he hasn’t just beaten any boxer, he’s beaten the former world champion Julio Cesar Chavez Jr.
“Face someone like him then we can listen to you talk about being a boxer, but until you face a boxer you can’t state that you’re a boxer and last thing you need to do is say you’re carrying my sport.”
