Jake Paul and Eddie Hearn shook hands on a $1million bet on this weekend's Katie Taylor vs Amanda Serrano fight.
The co-promoters have been cordial throughout the build-up for this weekend's undisputed lightweight title bout, but became heated at today's press conference in New York. Paul and Hearn argued over Saturday night's main event, eventually agreeing to a seven-figure wager.
During a seemingly routine question-and-answer session, the pair found themselves in a heated war of words when Paul decided to put his expensive jewellery on the line to back Serrano. Hearn, on the other hand, is confident Taylor will retain her belts, and mocked the YouTube star for his offer.
"You're fully confident that your charge will be victorious and become undisputed lightweight champion?" Hearn asked Paul, who hit back by saying he was "more confident than you are".
When Paul suggested that the pair bet, Hearn insisted he wouldn't engage in a tattoo wager as Tyron Woodley did before his first fight with Paul, to which the YouTube star replied: "I'll bet you all of the jewellery that I'm wearing right now that Amanda wins the fight."
Hearn hit back by joking that he was hoping to bet a lot more than what he evaluated at $10,000, with Paul claiming that it was worth closer to $500,000.
Ultimately, the pair blustered back-and-forth before settling on a seven-figure bet, with Paul immediately offering to shake hands on the wager. However, when it came to making it official in front of the cameras, it took a lot of needling to convince Hearn that it was worth betting such a sum.
"We'll talk, I know about your bets" he pleaded, as Paul held his hand out for a handshake. "We'll talk, we'll get that together." "I bet that Amanda wins for a million dollars," Paul implored, before eventually the Brit agreed, and insisted that they would get it "papered up".
Who will win the $1million bet? Let us know in the comments section below!
Hearn and Paul later told media that the bet was legitimate. "Yeah, the bet is for real, but I will just say that we will sort that out. I don't want that to detract from this great fight. You've got my word on that, don't worry, we'll work that out," he said.
Paul added: "I think the bet just makes the fight more interesting, everybody wants to see how the bet will be resolved so tune in on to DAZN to see the winner of this fight. There's a lot on the line. Obviously we're still up for the ladies and we're still here for an amazing fight."
The YouTuber-turned-boxer has also promised that he will give his winnings to Serrano, who is already earning a career-high purse in the seven figures for her undisputed title challenge. The hard-hitting fighter has become a millionaire since beginning to work with Paul last year, and is now set to make a life-changing sum of money to face Taylor, who is also making millions.
