UFC legend Randy Couture has given Jake Paul his stamp of approval amid the YouTuber-turned-boxer's rivalry with Dana White.
Couture, a six-time world champion at light-heavyweight and heavyweight, is a staunch advocate of better fighter pay, and has pushed for the introduction of the Muhammad Ali act to be adopted from boxing for MMA fighters. And watching Paul, the brash social media star who has divided the combat sports world in recent years, take a stance on behalf of athletes has impressed him.
And while the Hall of Fame heavyweight is no fan of Paul's promotional tactics, he admits that his stance on improved fighter pay must be a net positive for the sport. Couture was even planning to stay in New York after the PFL play-offs that he will attend tomorrow night had Paul's fight with Hasim Rahman Jr gone ahead as planned.
"I was disappointed to see that the fight's being postponed or even cancelled," Couture said of Paul's bout with Rahman Jr. "I know Rahman is a big dude and Jake isn't really that big so that was a big step up in weight which would have been a big issue for him.
"I was going to stay an extra day and go to that fight for the reasons that people talk about. I'm not exactly one for the YouTube sensations and some of the rhetoric and stuff that goes on there but I can get behind Jake Paul because he's poking Dana White and shining a light on the disparaging difference between pay in boxing and pay in MMA.
"A lot of that boils down to the 1996 federal legislation and protects boxers and creates transparency in their sport. It's one of the things I'm proud to be in the PFL about, because they're doing a much better job paying the fighters, taking care of the fighters and addressing some of the issues in our sport and the growing pains that we're going through as an exploding combat sport."
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Paul has very publicly gone after White in a lengthy feud, with brutal jabs thrown towards the UFC president. He has offered to fight for free in the UFC in unfavourable match-ups against Nate Diaz or Jorge Masvidal if the promotion agree to raise the minimum payouts for fighters and give them long-term healthcare.
And he brought his trolling of the UFC boss to new levels earlier this year when he released a "diss track" mocking him and pushing for improved fighter pay. The song was streamed over 5million times and featured a music video where Paul attacked a caricature of White.
Randy Couture was speaking as an ambassador for the Professional Fighters League. The PFL play-offs take place on Friday night live from New York's Hulu Theater, with Scottish fighter Stevie Ray facing Anthony Pettis on Channel 4 at midnight.
