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How good is Jake Paul as a boxer?
I saw that the YouTuber just beat a Nate Diaz last night by unanimous decision. Wikipedia lists him at 7-1. His previous victories don't seem to be over professional boxers, and his sole loss was delivered by an actual boxer. I'm sure he'd kick my ass if I were in the ring, but to what extent is he an actually competitive athlete, vs. an entertainer whose matches are artfully crafted to be an extremely lucrative performative dance by both participants?
It's so hard to judge because of the quality of his competition. He seems to have good power and good athleticism for his size; he does sometimes land his overhand right, and when he does, his opponents are hurt. However, his opponents are never good enough boxers to exploit his weaknesses in technique and inexperience.
You may find it instructive or interesting to watch an actual championship cruiserweight bout, such as this one from earlier this year between Chris Billam-Smith and Lawrence Okolie. Consider if Paul would be able to effectively mitigate Okolie's constant holding and spoiling, or whether he could withstand Billam-Smith's accurate, powerful punching. He's never had to face anything at this level, and I doubt that he'd be able to; but then, these are the best cruiserweights in the world. Okolie would certainly smother and overpower him, and I think there's no way he could prevent Billam-Smith from taking his head off.
https://youtube.com/watch?v=9JsWrAQnrTQ
(or just the highlights: https://youtube.com/watch?v=3G-DOtO6FJw&t=1s)
I'm prepared to believe that Paul could hang in there for a while against a fighter like Blake Caparello: fading former fringe contender, KOs less than 50% of his opponents, has lost when he's stepped to higher class. That would be the real test for Paul, and it's what every real boxing fan would like to see; but I guess there's no reason for him to ever do it.
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Jake Paul doesn't box. He participates in "fights" to garner money and views. If we're making comparisons on that scale, he's just as good as Floyd Mayweather or Mike Tyson.
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