Jake Paul is the ‘idiot’ who created his own genre in sports, and Nate Diaz will cash in

What Jake Paul began as a lark has morphed into a lucrative niche that is here to stay in sports: Elite Professional Clown boxing.

On Tuesday afternoon at the American Airlines Center, Jake Paul showed up to promote his next bout, against UFC star Nate Diaz.

Think of this as Harvard v. Yale.

“This is a sketch a-- press conference,” Diaz remarked during the press conference where he extolled his greatness, amid a lot of words that started with the letter “F.”

The press conference moderator felt the need to say, “I want to apologize for any bad language. Lot of kids watching.”

They are?

Yes. There are a lot of kids watching.

Kids watching is why Jake Paul has a boxing career. Kids watching is why Jake Paul no longer needs any career, at the age of 26.

Jake Paul versus Nate Diaz is an eight-round fight scheduled for Aug. 5 at the AAC; ladies and gentlemen, new TCU graduates, schedule your calendars, and weddings, accordingly.

Paul’s boxing career, and professional existence, bothers everyone over the age of 40. He inspires everyone under the age of 39.

He walked right around “What you’re supposed to do” and created a name, and a life, without any of the norms the adults insist you have to do when in fact you don’t.

The internet, and social media, created a new strata of careers that never previously existed. That really makes a lot of people over 40 angry, because what Jake Paul, and every “influencer,” does looks more like stealing than work.

Maybe the joke was always on the rest of us.

Paul may be a joke, but he “gets it” better than most sports leagues, sports teams, and sports organizations do. Some league executives would be wise to quietly watch what this man does.

Paul’s background and rise came via YouTube, and social media. Diaz’s background and stardom was created in mixed martial arts, in an octagon, and Dana White’s UFC.

Sport, meet 2023.

“I’ve changed the entire game,” Paul boasted during the press conference. “I’ve put on bigger pay per views this sport has ever seen. Talk about resume, I’m building it up. This is my eighth fight, and I’m fighting Nate Diaz, one of the biggest fighters in MMA history.”

A lot of this is promotional garbage that if it arrived in your mailbox you would throw it away without reading it.

There is also enough truth in this woofing people keep buying Jake Paul boxing matches against fighters who really aren’t boxers.

The traditional fight/sports fan may bemoan this evolution, but the young consumer in 2023 is not anchored to tradition. The younger consumer just wants entertainment.

This is about conflict, and absolutely no one cares if the “hate” is an act. Thanks to AI, and technology that advances faster than we can blink, we increasingly have no idea if the photograph, or video, we just watched is real or not.

Maybe the younger consumer does not even care.

The conflict is why we watch. From The Bachelor to Top Chef to Fox News or CNN, the lure of “conflict” is the hook.

Maybe it’s an indictment on us, but Jake Paul shamelessly exploits something that works.

He barks. He cusses. He makes fun of people.

When asked if Diaz is the strongest fighter he’s faced, Paul said, “I think he’s the dumbest.”

Paul’s social media followers, which currently exceeds 20 million, gave him a career tens of thousands of aspiring fighters yearn to have, but, and this pains to admit, this influencer/bozo is a boxer. A decent one.

If you are in the ring, throwing and receiving punches, for any real length of time, you’re boxing. Doesn’t mean you’re good at it, but you’re doing it.

No sport more than boxing fits the Theodore Roosevelt quote, “The credit belongs to the man who is actually in the arena, whose face is marred by dust and sweat and blood.”

Step into the ring once and the perspective will change your life. (Did mine).

A few minutes in a ring are some of the electrifying minutes a person can experience. It’s why so many people can’t quit a sport that is slightly safer than smoking six packs of Marlboro unfiltered cigarettes a day.

Jake Paul tried boxing for fun, and he created a genre of sport that found an audience, because he has an audience of millions.

“I am fueled with more ambition, hunger and drive than ever before,” said Paul, who lost his last fight, against Tommy Fury, last year. “I have a lot to prove. This is do or die for me. If (Diaz) beats me, where does that leave me?”

Where would a loss leave Jake Paul?

Lining up more famous names to fight; next time it will be Connor McGregor.

Elite Professional Clown boxing is part of our sports landscape, because the kids are watching.