Former MMA fighter Ben Askren had a chance to rewrite the end of his fighting career on Saturday night but instead suffered a devastating first-round knockout to YouTube star-turned-boxer Jake Paul. With so much hype heading into Saturday night's fight, it took Paul less than two minutes to score a knockout and earn his third professional win.
There were so many question marks surrounding the fight that even casual fighting fans tuned in to see how it would unfold.
The 24-year-old Paul entered the fight with a 2-0 record in his young boxing career. But his two wins came against fellow YouTuber AnEsonGib and former NBA player and Slam Dunk Contest champion Nate Robinson. He had yet to face an actual professional fighter.
Meanwhile, the 36-year-old Askren has had an illustrious combat sports career, although he's known primarily as a grappler and not a striker. He was the 2007 US Olympic Team Member and National champion. He was also the former Bellator and ONE Welterweight Champion before moving over to the Ultimate Fighting Championship late in his career. Askren went 1-2 in his brief UFC career, which included the first knockout loss of his career against Jorge Masvidal via a highlight reel-worthy flying knee. Askren retired from combat sports in late 2019 but came out of retirement for his fight against Paul, which reportedly paid him a minimum of $500,000.
Askren is the first legitimate fighter that Paul has faced, but he's definitely not in the prime of his career anymore. And he was never a legitimate striking threat. Still, Paul proved his doubters wrong and showed he's more than just a YouTube sensation.
Paul (3-0, 3 KO) landed 9 of 26 punches in the fight, while Askren landed 3 of 14 punches. Paul displayed some impressive power to counter Askren's unorthodox striking style. Paul connected with a solid right-hand midway through the first round of their cruiserweight fight that sent Askren to the canvas. Although Askren did manage to get up, referee Brian Stutts decided to wave the fight off at 1:59 in the first round. Askren protested the stoppage, but replays showed that the former mixed martial artist moved sideways at the same time he was asked to step forward by the referee.
"It's been four months, I've been in training camp every day," Paul said after his win. "I deserve this sh--. I don't know how many times I have to prove myself that this is for real."
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