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The matchup between Jake Paul and Tommy Fury has collapsed yet again. The two have been scheduled to face each other twice now, but the bout seems cursed in a vein similar to the matchup between Khabib Nurmagomedov and Tony Ferguson.
That match itself was scheduled five times before UFC President Dana White ultimately gave up on seeing the fight materialize.
There was initial interest in seeing Paul fight Fury due to the latter's connection to all-time great heavyweight boxer Tyson Fury, as well as being the first proper boxer Paul would have faced. His previous foes have been smaller, older men with no fully realized boxing experience.
However, it seems now that the matchup has lost its luster following its second reported cancelation.
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Thus, Paul recently announced his intentions to move on from the bout. While there is talk of Hasim Rahman Jr. being Fury's replacement, there are 5 UFC fighters, both active and inactive, who can step up in his place.
#5. Dan Hardy
Dan Hardy was once an extraordinarily tough action fighter in the UFC's welterweight division. He challenged Georges St-Pierre for the UFC welterweight championship off the back of a seven-fight win streak.
Hardy, however, was ultimately unsuccessful in his sole UFC title fight, losing to the Canadian great by unanimous decision. Three more losses followed and the Brit was in unfamiliar territory with a four-fight losing streak.
While he eventually rebounded with two wins, he was forced into an early retirement due to medical reasons. He spent the next few years as a UFC commentator and analyst while expressing frequent interest in returning to professional fighting.
Upon the end of his UFC contract, Hardy seemed to campaign for a boxing match with Tyron Woodley, mocking the latter's failed efforts against Jake Paul. With the American's penchant for selecting aging welterweight fighters no longer signed to the UFC, Hardy seems like a fitting candidate to box Paul next.
This is even more so given his oft-repeated interest in fighting again, least of all because of the payday he's likely to receive.
#4. Anderson Silva
Anderson Silva is one of the greatest fighters in MMA history. He was a dazzling counter-striker with supernatural quickness and slick movement, hypnotizing his foes with a range of feints designed to dupe and devastate as they set up his thunderous counter-punches.
However, as 'The Spider' aged, the next generation of mixed martial artists gradually passed him by. Chris Weidman famously made the Brazilian pay for his tendency to lean away from strikes with his hands at his waist.
Weidman doubled up his punches, causing Silva to lean as far back as the human anatomy allowed before following it up with a knockout blow, which Anderson was in a poor position to defend.
It led to a downward spiral that eventually culminated in the Brazilian's retirement from MMA. However, Silva has since found new life in the boxing ring, besting former WBC middleweight champion Julio César Chávez Jr. and recently KO'ing Tito Ortiz.
Not only has Silva expressed an interest in facing Jake Paul, explaining that the fight is a possibility, but his coaches have also issued warnings to the American. This sets the stage for the kind of drama he enjoys to promote his bouts.
#3. Tyron Woodley
When Tyron Woodley was initially announced as Jake Paul's opponent after the latter's brutal knockout of Ben Askren, there was an initial spark of interest.
Woodley was the first fighter with any striking acumen and knockout power that Paul had chosen to face. Prior to the bout, the former YouTuber faced another YouTuber, a basketball player in Nate Robinson.
He had also taken on Ben Askren, a 40-year-old retired fighter coming off major hip surgery who had never shown a single interest in introducing even a serviceable striking game to compliment his wrestling skill-set.
What many failed to realize, however, was that Woodley was not an elite striker. He was a limited counter-puncher who benefited from the threat of his takedowns, which were not a factor in boxing.
While he possessed powerful low kicks, he could not rely on them in boxing. Without low kicks, Woodley's striking was little more than him retreating in a straight line to create the time, space, and leverage needed to land a counter-right hand he hoped to walk his opponents into by backing up.
In his physical prime, he was fast and explosive enough to make this approach largely effective. However, against a taller foe who actively builds off his jab, creating even more distance is the wrong approach. When he locked horns with Jake Paul, he predictably lost.
Regardless of the loss, the former UFC champion still believes he, at least, won the first bout despite the judges' verdict. He eagerly accepted the rematch with little training to prepare him for the bout, losing by knockout.
Thus, he seems like a reliable choice whenever Paul is in need of someone to fill in for an opponent who cannot step into the ring for one reason or another, least of all because of the high paycheck involved.
#2. Nick Diaz
Much like Dan Hardy, Nick Diaz is a fighter that represents an ideal foe for Jake Paul. He is well past his athletic and technical prime as a mixed martial artist, as evidenced by how slow and sluggish he looked in his bizarre loss to Robbie Lawler.
More than anything, however, Nick Diaz appears to have lost the drive to prove what he once believed with every fiber of his being: that he is the best fighter in the world.
An aging welterweight who seems to have lost a step, is an optimal opponent for Jake Paul to pad his record with. Furthermore, Nick Diaz brings name value, and a win over another MMA world champion — as the older Diaz brother once held the Strikeforce welterweight championship — as recognizable as the Stockton legend, is surely enticing enough that Jake Paul would strongly consider the bout. Especially for a short-term replacement to the missing Tommy Fury.
#1. Nate Diaz
While Jake Paul has become well-known for calling out Conor McGregor, the Irishman has rarely acknowledged the 'Problem Child' save for a tweeted video in which he mocked the American.
Nate Diaz, on the other hand, has mentioned the former YouTuber by name and even expressed a recent interest in boxing him. He continues to battle the UFC over his contractual obligations and the alleged lack of fights he's been encountering.
Usually, the UFC is quick to silence all talk of its fighters crossing over into boxing to challenge anyone in the squared circle. In a stunning burial of his own fighter, however, Dana White encouraged Nate Diaz to pursue a boxing match with Jake Paul.
He clarified that the scenario does not worry him as it's not as though it was Kamaru Usman calling for a boxing match with a former YouTuber instead of facing off against elite contenders in the welterweight division.
White furthered his point by highlighting Nate's sole win in the last five or six years, opening the door for a matchup between Diaz and Jake Paul.
