JAKE PAUL makes it no secret he is ‘the evil troll behind the iPhone screen’ but warned hatred only drives and motivates him.
The YouTuber-turned boxer has lived half of his life on camera, finding success alongside older brother Logan on social media.
Paul has used his online persona to drive huge interest in his professional boxing career, which started in January 2020 and stands at 3-0.
The 24-year-old has had a loyal fanbase since aged 12 but it is his new wave of haters who are now making the loudest noise.
Paul is happy to feed off the naysayers and even claimed they are secretly supporters of his, who are none the wiser.
In an exclusive interview with SunSport, he said: “I’m like the evil troll behind the iPhone screen just laughing and giggling and just having fun with this whole entire thing.
“I think haters are confused fans. I don’t think there is such a thing as haters.
“If you really don’t like someone you just don’t watch them, you don’t talk about them, you don’t care what they’re up to and you don’t mention their name.
“So all of these people are actually my fans.”
Paul debuted as a pro with a first-round stoppage against YouTube rival ‘AnEsonGib’.
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He then followed it up with two brutal knockouts, firstly against ex-NBA star Nate Robinson and then retired UFC welterweight Ben Askren, both 36.
Despite his highlight-reel wins, Paul has made just as many headlines outside the ring through his unwavering confidence.
But away from the bright lights, glitz and glamour, the American has admitted to struggling with anxiety attacks.
Despite his open reveal, Paul says dealing with hate is not taxing on his mental health, instead only inspiring him to come out on top.
He explained: “I think it’s what drives and motivates me.
“I use that s*** as fuel, I’m like say whatever you want to say, it’s just making me work harder to prove all of you wrong.
“I like nothing more than proving people wrong and every single day when I show up to practise there’s millions and millions of people wanting to see me fail and get knocked out.
“That drives me, so they’re just putting fuel into my gas tank to make me a sharper, faster, stronger individual.”
Paul’s star power cannot be denied. The 1.5million pay-per-views sold for his two-minute demolition of Askren in April are proof to that.
One week after, the former vlogger turned up to UFC 261 in Florida to support his friend Jorge Masvidal, 36, who was beaten by Kamaru Usman, 33.
Fans in the sold-out 15,000 seater stadium could be heard shouting ‘F*** Jake Paul’ while ex-UFC champion Daniel Cormier, 42, confronted the cruiserweight boxer.
But it was music to Paul’s ears, only growing his brand as boxing villain, while it reminded him of the group of supporters who have always been by his side.
He said: “I don’t really care. There’s 15,000 people chanting, ‘F*** Jake Paul’ in the UFC arena.
“It’s easy to look at that and say, ‘Damn, everyone hates this kid’. But it’s like I’m getting a million likes a post on Instagram.
“There’s the one million people that like me versus the 15,000 in the arena who are chanting.
“Again, I have so many fans who have supported me since I was 12-year’s-old.
“I’ve been building this since I started YouTube when I was 12 with my brother.
“My fanbase isn’t going anywhere and the haters attacking us almost brings our bond closer.”
