CLEVELAND (August 27, 2021) – Ahead of this Sunday’s Jake Paul vs. Tyron Woodley SHOWTIME PPV event, trainers for the main event fighters previewed the highly anticipated showdown during a media roundtable Friday before Paul and Woodley enter the ring at Rocket Mortgage FieldHouse in Cleveland.
After Thursday’s heated press conference, Friday saw Paul’s head trainer B.J. Flores and Paul’s assistant trainer Jacob Chavez, along with Woodley’s trainer Gerald Tucker and Woodley’s assistant trainer Pedro Diaz, discuss training camp, Sunday’s matchup and more with media members.
Tickets starting at $25 are still available via RocketMortgageFieldHouse.com.
Here is what the trainers had to say Friday:
B.J. FLORES, Paul’s Trainer
“Tyron poses a lot of threats. He is definitely Jake’s most dangerous opponent. If you look back at history, no one is in there with killers at 3-0. Tyron is strong, explosive, quick twitch. For Jake to fight a guy like that in his third fight in the main event on a SHOWTIME PPV, it’s really incredible.
“I don’t want Jake just going in there and blowing guys out. Of course, he is still making mistakes, it takes years and years and thousands of hours to do anything well. He has sparred with world champions and top contenders. He has taken his lumps, which is necessary. People think we take it easy on Jake, but that’s not true. He is like a shark. Once he tastes a little blood, he goes crazy.
“How far can he go? He is starting, he is getting going. His fundamentals are good. He is very sharp. We remove distractions and keep it simple, which is effective in the boxing world.
“Jake is a 24-year-old with the head of a 45-year-old on his shoulders. He is a very, very smart kid. He’s learned a lot in business as a young man. He is misunderstood. He’s flashy. That’s why he has me and Jacob to be his OGs and pull him back in.
“Pedro Diaz and Gerald Tucker are both excellent. Props to Tyron for assembling a very strong team. I think we will have a nice little duel on our hands as trainers on Sunday night.”
JACOB CHAVEZ, Paul’s Assistant Trainer
“Jake has so many great tools. Both hands, both sides. His right hand is his strongest. If he can work his left hand more as the fight goes on, you will see he has power there too.
“It’s going to take a one-in-a-million shot from Tyron to get Jake out of there on Sunday night.
“I want to see Jake have a competitive fight and get the experience of going rounds. I said the same thing before the Ben Askren fight, too.
“Every single sparring partner that comes in to spar Jake treats that moment like they are fighting in the biggest event of their life. No one wants to get knocked out by Jake Paul. Everyone brings their A-game to the sparring sessions. One of the sparring partners texted me that he was nervous before he came out to spar Jake. When they come to spar, they come fired up and ready to go.
“Jake sparred two or three times a week during this camp, always eight rounds. It’s not going to be a cardio thing for Jake. He is ready to go eight rounds, but I think he’s going to run Tyron into a big right hand that is just going to be nasty.”
GERALD TUCKER, Woodley’s Trainer
“You’re going to see on fight night that Tyron has a great boxing background, we just had to polish it up. He’s got great power and defense. It’s impressive.
“I like Jake as a fighter. I like that he’s entered our realm. I was a fan of his before this fight, but I’ve gone against fighters that I’m a fan of before.
“No matter what Jake’s done or not done in previous fights, we just prepare the best we can. You have to cover all your bases so you’re ready for anything.
“If you watch MMA fights, they have to defend a lot of things. Now Tyron only has to worry about upper body. It’s way easier for him to make people miss.”
PEDRO DIAZ, Woodley’s Assistant Trainer
“I think that if you look at MMA, it’s a sport that puts many kinds of combat skills together, but MMA is still mostly upper body and the hands are important. A lot of those fighters come from boxing backgrounds.
“We’re a serious team and we work hard on Tyron’s boxing technique. We also trade notes with MMA coaches to get the best result for Tyron. You have to work as a team to get the most out of a fighter.
“Gerald is a great trainer who works with a lot of great champions. He has great knowledge, and I have great experience. We’re a really good combination and we each have our part to play.”
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About Jake Paul vs. Tyron Woodley:
Jake Paul vs. Tyron Woodley is the headline attraction atop a stacked evening of professional boxing action presented by SHOWTIME PPV® and Most Valuable Promotions in association with Holden Productions, live from Rocket Mortgage FieldHouse in Cleveland, Ohio, on Sunday, August 29 at 8 p.m. ET/5 p.m. PT. The SHOWTIME PPV is available for purchase now at SHOWTIME.com and via the SHOWTIME app, and is available to order through all major cable, satellite and telco providers in the U.S. and Canada. Renowned content creator and undefeated professional boxer Jake “The Problem Child” Paul will take on the toughest challenge of his budding career in the former UFC champion Tyron “The Chosen One” Woodley. Featured on the undercard is unified featherweight world champion Amanda “The Real Deal” Serrano defending her titles against super bantamweight champion Yamileth Mercado and the U.S. debuts of popular U.K. attractions Daniel Dubois and Tommy Fury in separate bouts.
For more information visit www.SHO.com/sports, follow on Twitter via @JakePaul, @TWooodley and @ShowtimeBoxing, on Instagram via @JakePaul, @Twooodley and @ShowtimeBoxing, or become a fan on Facebook at www.Facebook.com/SHOBoxing.
