7 minute read. TL;DR at the end
I know I know – Dana and Jake are feuding!! They are mortal social-media enemies! Jake is going to take on Dana and fix fighter pay!! How could they ever work together!?
First of all, I’m sorry to break the news to you – but Jake Paul isn’t going to make the UFC change how they pay their fighters. Sure, Jake is being an annoyance to Dana and shedding light on an important topic. I would even say that Jake is being sincere, to some extent.
But Jake Paul can use all the resources and clout he has to “reach out” to whoever he wants. Good luck! But best case scenario – he is years away from making any sort of structural change. And that is assuming he can even find the right people, and those people happen to side with him and not the UFC and WME! Jake even compared himself to a fly! Just an annoyance.
There are already two class-action lawsuits fully underway! If they need Jake Pauls help, they can call him. But, for now at least, it’s all just noise.
Literal noise. Jake made a diss track..
But you know what Jake Paul is really good at? Being a prize fighter.
And you know what Dana White does? Puts on the biggest fights in the word.
Dana White and Jake Paul teaming up would be GOOD business. It’s almost so obvious it feels redundant to even say. There is a lot of noise and ego between these two, but one thing they do have in common – they both understand what is best for business.
One can’t help but wonder if it’s possible..
Jake Paul belongs to the MMA community. Whether we like it or not, as Uncle Chael said, “Jake Paul is absolutely a part of this community. Jake Paul is one of us”. It is mostly MMA media covering his fights. Jake is “feuding” with UFC/MMA personalities.
Jake has chosen the UFC/MMA community to engage with, and it kind of makes sense. Maybe it’s because we’re easy to troll. But I think it’s because we’re more fun. And he was a wrestler growing up! Jake and Logan both grew up as a UFC fans with their dad.
Jake Paul clearly wants to be a part of the UFC. He is literally spending his own money to become an “owner”!!
There are some potential obstacles,
Nakisa “the warlock” Bidarian. Dana’s relationship with Jakes Paul’s main advisor is super interesting. Dana says, “they never got a long”. However, Nakisa was the CFO at the UFC for more than 5 years. He oversaw the UFC sale, and after he left the UFC, he was the CEO of Fertitta Capital for 3 years.
So, they do have a history of working together. Dana and Nakisa both share the Ferrita’s as business partners. There must be at least some room for compatibility there.
Also – do not forget about Hunter Campbell. The new Lorenzo Ferrtita. The level-headed businessman. He would most likely be doing the actual negotiations. So there might not be a need for Dana and Nakisa to interact. Probably just like before..
Jake Paul’s grandstanding in regards to UFC fighter pay.
I really do think there is sincerity in Jake Paul’s efforts to get fighters more money. And there is no harm in “shaking that tree”. It can’t hurt. But even if you are Jake Paul – you can not deny that at least some of what he is doing is simply good self promotion. Its cheap and easy attention to poke at Dana White and advocate for fighters to get paid more. The reality is somewhere in the middle.
And whatever “middle” may mean to you – just don’t mark out too hard in either direction.
Regardless of his intentions, Jake Paul may think the gimmick has to be Jake Paul vs Dana White. That this only works if they are on opposing sides. He very well could have worked himself into a shoot! But I doubt it. And even if he did, the people around him didn’t. If the money is right, everyone will forgive and forget real quick.
“Keep your enemies close”, “I can effect more change from the inside”. Nobody would care.
Because Dana White and Jake Paul getting together would be a huge deal.
But what about Dana! He hates that YouTube kid, right!?
Well first of all, nothing really seems to bother Dana White anymore. Dana might be the only person in world who isn’t bothered by the GD pandemic.
But Jake has definitely got under Dana’s skin, and Dana seems to be having fun poking back at Jake. So at the least – Jake Paul has got Dana White’s attention. Which is not easy to do these days. You are doing something right if you can get Dana to respond to you on his Instagram..
Did anyone happen to catch Aaron Bronsteter’s interview with Dana where he plays the odds game? Check out how Dana responds to the idea of Jake fighting in the UFC.
The beauty of that game is Aaron found a way to pull direct answers out of Dana! It’s mostly trivial fun stuff. But sometimes Dana will offer up some legitimate insight on potential plans the UFC has. And the best insight we got this round, was from the only question Dana did not answer! When Aaron asked, ‘will Jake Paul fight in the UFC in 2022’, Dana didn’t say he wasn’t interested, his first reaction was to inquire about Jakes availability..
But come on!! The UFC is where the best fighters in the world compete! Dana would never consider celebrity status when determining who deserves various opportunities in the UFC…
Unless you’re 2-1 in MMA, 1-1 in the UFC, and your name is Brock Lesnar. And the UFC needs someone to fight a 50-year-old light heavyweight for the UFC Heavyweight Championship. Or you’re some former professional wrestler who “wants a chance”. Or a viral street fighter..
I could go on and on. We all know – a fighters celebrity status is constantly influencing the UFCs decisions on what kind of opportunities fighters will get. They look at social media stats to determine placement on the card!
And let’s not lose sight of the fact that 99.99% of the time, it is the best fighting the best in the UFC. It really is what makes the UFC special.
But every once and awhile – Dana and the UFC will break the rules. And that is part of what makes prize fighting fun! There isn’t some highly structured meritocracy that determines who gets an opportunity.
Sometimes it’s just fun to have fun.
And Dana White putting on fights with Jake Paul, in some sort of form, would be a ton of fun.
Dana White always says – he puts on the fights people want to see. And a lot of people would want to watch a Jake Paul fight in the UFC. You may not want to admit it – but we’d all watch.
Dana is a lot more dialed in and “with it” than people give him credit for. Dana has become a content machine of his own. He’s mentioned that WME wants to just pump out content with him. Food shows. Surfing. A half dozen fight shows.
Dana has been running around with the ‘Nelk Boys’ lately. (I had no idea who they were until Dana started chumming around with them, but apparently, they have a large following). Why is that? Do you really think Dana is trying to befriend some 20-year-olds!? Or does Dana recognize that his content is perfect for that generation. Its “edgy”. It easily goes viral. There is always lots of drama going down. Tons of personalities. This is Jake Paul’s fan base and world!! UFC/Dana White would further establish their presence in a whole new “market” getting into business with Jake Paul. And if Dana White doesn’t recognize this (he does) – someone at WME does.
There are several ways this partnership could go,
Maybe this is how they finally launch Zuffa Boxing. Dana White looks for up and coming boxers to challenge Jake Paul.
This would also solve two inevitable problems Jake Paul is bound to face as a boxer.
1. He runs out of opponents, and 2. He loses.
Partnering with Dana White and the ESPN/UFC machine that is behind him would offer Jake a great solution. Promoting fighters who have recently lost is nothing new to Dana. And the “opponent” would always be there! It is the promoter!! It is one of the great all-time gimmicks.
Maybe they have a reality show on Fight Pass where Dana and Jake live together for 90 days.
Or maybe the former Ohio State wrestler, will just straight up fight in the UFC. For better or for worse – Jake Paul fighting in the UFC would be a fucking huge event.
At this moment – of course it seems impossible. But they don’t have to get along (it actually might be better they don’t), it just makes too much business cents (sorry) to keep these two crazy kids apart.
I don’t know when. But I would bet some heavy units that Jake fights in the UFC one day – but you gotta give me some odds..
TL;DR – We are all too focused on Dana White and Jake Paul “feuding”. And not nearly focused enough on the massive business opportunity that is available.
From Jake Paul’s perspective, he clearly wants to be a part of the MMA community and the UFC. He is literally spending his own money to become an “owner” of the UFC.
And from Dana’s perspective, Jake Paul wouldn’t even be the least experienced celebrity to be given a chance in the UFC.
Dana is befriending 20 years olds, at least in part, to push the Dana White/UFC brand to a new younger market, the Gen Zs.
And – go watch that clip above. You tell me Dana is not interested in Jake Paul..