Tony Bellew has revealed Jake Paul paid him respect when the pair crossed paths in New York.
Paul had claimed not to know who former cruiserweight world champion Bellew was when a potential fight between the two was mooted. Bellew responded by warning the YouTube star not to "wake the f***ing animal".
Both men were at Madison Square Garden last weekend with Paul representing Amanda Serrano in her undisputed fight with Katie Taylor while Bellew was part of the DAZN punditry team. And the Brit revealed Paul was very different in person compared to his social media persona.
"He couldn’t carry my jockstrap, never mind get in a boxing ring with me! There’s just not a chance in this world," he told talkSPORT. "You know what? I’m going to give him his due. I was coming down the stairs after work [on Saturday], and as I’ve done that, he’s come across me.
"He just stepped up to me and went, 'I respect you'. He put his fist out and we touched fists. I thought, 'I can have that, sound, not a problem mate'. I was dead on edge because I try to stay away from trouble, I don’t want any problems.
"If you’ve got a problem, then no problem, I’ll see to it. But he didn’t, it was nice of him to do that. I only wish him good. Good luck to him. If he keeps fighting non-boxers in a boxing environment, that’s up to him. Let him keep doing what he’s doing."
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Paul has amassed a professional boxing record of 5-0 since he made his debut in 2020 and will return to the ring for his sixth bout on August 13. Bellew has not fought since he was stopped by Oleksandr Usyk in 2018.
After Paul had claimed Bellew was known only for his role in Rocky film Creed, the Liverpudlian tweeted a picture of himself with his world title and said: "Just in case you needed to know what I look like Jake Paul, this is me! The other is how ya coach got to know me! Creed was Pretty Ricky Conlan! What this is Tony BELLEW! Do not wake the f****** animal up that’s been dead for years…"
