FORMER world champion Paulie Malignaggi has thrown his hat in the ring to face Jake Paul as he claimed he would be the first ‘real boxer’ to challenge the YouTuber.
The 41-year-old hasn’t fought inside the squared circle since being stopped by Britain’s Sam Eggington at the O2 Arena in March 2017.
Malignaggi did return to the ring in June 2019, but was outpointed against Artem Lobov on his Bare Knuckle Fighting Championship debut.
But the Brooklyn native, who won world titles in both the light-welterweight and welterweight divisions, believes he is the ideal candidate to face Paul next.
Paul, 25, has won all five of his bouts since turning professional, though he is yet to face a boxer yet.
His last two victories have come against UFC legend Tyron Woodley, 39, while he knocked out former MMA ace Ben Askren, 39, in devastating fashion last April.
Paul’s debut came against fellow YouTuber AnEnsonGib who he made short work of, before blasting away ex-NBA star Nate Robinson.
Despite his punching power, Paul has faced criticism for failing to pit his wits against a boxer, though he did see a December fight against Tommy Fury fall through.
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And Paul continues to be linked with a potential dust-up against former WBC champion Julie Cesar Chavez Jr.
However Malignaggi has stated that he doesn’t think Paul will fight Chaves Jr as the Mexican could beat him.
Speaking on his YouTube channel, he said: “I wanna see Jake Paul vs a real boxer. I think it’s gonna be an older guy.
“But it can’t just be an older guy nobody’s ever heard of. A little bit older, a little bit smaller. He’s gonna hit him, so maybe not the biggest puncher. Err, Paulie Malignaggi?
“There is a lot of talk including Chavez Jr, but I personally think that he beats Jake Paul.
“I think Paul was having trouble with Tyron Woodley until he knocked him out. If anything don’t think he can take on a boxer in his prime.
“Chavez Jr in his prime wasn’t even that good, but I still think he was better than Jake Paul as he did win a world championship legitimately.
“I think he is too much because he also has the size, he might be big enough to give Jake Paul a lot of problems.
“Paul is the star here, you want to make sure that you groom the star in the right way by putting him in fights where he is at risk but that he can win.”
