JAKE PAUL is prepared to pay Tommy Fury from his ‘own pocket’ and the Love Islander has been urged ‘take the opportunity’.
Fury already admitted he rejected two fight offers and told the YouTuber ‘get your figures up and then we can talk’.
That was even after Paul bumped up the price to $1million for a pay-per-view headliner over eight rounds in December.
And the social media sensation, 4-0 as a boxer, was putting money of his own into the deal in order to prize Fury into the ring.
Nakisa Bidarian, Paul’s advisor and founder of talent firm BAVAFA Sports, said the additional online offer was made off the cuff.
He warned Fury to accept it while he can and revealed the deal includes additional bonuses depending on the pay-per-view success.
Bidarian explained to SunSport: “Even what Jake put out yesterday, that was not something that was agreed between us and Showtime.
“That was Jake saying to me yesterday, ‘I’m going to come out of my own pocket and increase this, because I want to try and get this done’.
BETTING SPECIAL – GET JOSHUA TO WIN IN ROUNDS 1-6 AT 60/1 OR ANYTIME AT 25/1
“The offer is of course a base purse, plus pay-per-view participation in the UK, which is really the market he has any relevance in.
“And pay-per-view participation in the US. So, the upside is there if the fight performs.”
Fury, 22, signed a two-fight deal with network Showtime and made his US debut in late August, beating Paul’s sparring partner Anthony Taylor, 32.
Later that night, Paul, 24, scored the biggest win of his career against ex-UFC champion Tyron Woodley, 39, over the eight round distance.
Two offers were then turned down by Fury, who believed they were ‘not even worth talking about’.
That led to Paul’s public offer to increase it to $1m off his own back because his management were ready to move on to other targets.
Bidarian said: “What we said yesterday was let’s just put pencils down with Tommy and focus on the three or four other opponents that we’re speaking to.
“But Jake said, ‘This is the fight that I want to make happen right now, but I understand the timing, so here’s what I’m willing to do’.
“I said, ‘Listen, that’s your call, we haven’t spoken to Stephen Espinoza or Showtime but if that’s what you want to do, it’s your decision, it’s your money’.
“But that’s the basis of it, and I want to be clear; there’s additional upsides to that especially in the UK which is the market you’d hope Tommy would be very successful in when driving pay-per-view.”
Paul’s deal was not even approved by Showtime or their president of sports Espinoza as Bidarian warned it will be the third and final effort.
He said: “There is no offer beyond that, I would not advise Jake to go above that, the numbers just do not make sense.”
‘TAKE THE OPPORTUNITY’
Woodley was guaranteed $2m against Paul plus a cut of the PPV sales, meaning his purse could have sky rocketed.
But Bidarian – a former executive at the UFC – does not rate Fury at the same value as Woodley.
And he fears the former reality TV star could price himself out of a career-best payday.
Bidarian said: “The reality is Tommy’s nowhere near the draw Tyron Woodley was, who is a four-time UFC champion, one of the greatest welterweights of all time, who brings and entire MMA community with him.
“So while we respect the Fury family and we love working with Frank and George Warren, you have to be realistic and take the opportunity while it’s there.
“One of the biggest mistakes promoters and fighters make is they don’t make the fights when they should and that’s as soon as possible, when the timing is right.”
