Jake Paul will be back to his old ways in obliterating Roy Jones Jr should the pair ever come to blows – according to a popular video game.
The ‘Problem Child’, 27, made headlines when he bested former world champion Mike Tyson at the ATandT Stadium in Texas in November, picking apart his 58-year-old opponent at leisure over the course of eight rounds. The YouTuber-turned-pugilist ultimately saw his hand raised by unanimous decision on the night, although a number of fellow boxers have explained their distaste in the encounter.
Speaking to TMZ Sports about the bout, multi-weight world champion Jones Jr explained: “It makes me want to just go in there and at least just test Jake Paul’s chin. You know he’s got a good punch, I know he’s capable of putting anybody out, but I don’t think Mike checked his chin at all. So I wouldn’t mind just having a shot to see could I get to his chin, test his chin.
“If he could take the shot, cool – or if he can catch me before I get to his chin, cool. But I would definitely like a shot to get in there and shoot at his chin, you know? I think Mike got the opportunity, Mike’s legs just didn’t look good top me from round one – I kept saying that and people didn’t understand what I was saying, but the first thing we see go on fighters are their legs. And when Mike fought me he still had good legs, but this fight I just didn’t like his legs from round one and it was what it was.”
But what would happen if Jones Jr and Paul had their day in the squared-circle? Would Paul reign supreme and add yet another coveted name to his already stellar 11-1 record? Or would 55-year-old Jones Jr be able to avenge Tyson’s loss?
While a bout with Jones Jr may be appealing to Paul, he obviously has his sights set on facing Canelo Alvarez in the near future. So we decided to run a simulation bout between the the content creator and the former heavyweight, light heavyweight, middleweight and super middleweight title holder using the new ‘Undisputed’ video game. Here’s how it played out…
In the efforts of making the bout as realistic as possible, we adjusted the in-game settings prior to the bout. We increased the AI difficulty of both fighters to the maximum setting of ‘undisputed’, set the game type to ‘simulation’, and set the fight over the course of eight rounds – baring in mind that the majority of Paul’s professional fights have been over this.
We disabled the ‘saved by the bell’ setting, as well as the ‘3 knockdown rule’ while leaving the damage and stamina modifiers where they were on a setting of one. The referee leniency was also set to a default of five, with the maximum penalties slider set to a standard of three.
Paul came out with a high guard while looking incredibly tentative, landing a couple of good body shots before being cracked with a hard left hand to the head. Jones Jr followed up with a looping right hook to stumble the ‘Problem Child’ slightly. Paul then flashed Jones Jr with a three-piece combo as the round drew to a close.
Jones Jr wasted no time in showing off his flashy footwork, dancing around Paul’s efforts early in the second – even dropping his hands in a bout of showmanship. However, a heavy right hand to the body made him reassess his game-plan, before the two traded in the centre. A very close round.
Jones Jr came out slipping and ripping at the turn of the third, before Paul began landing at leisure once getting his read on the fight. Paul ducked into a heavy right uppercut which stunned him momentarily, as Jones Jr began targeting the body on account of a high guard. Paul started to swing for the fences in frustration thereafter, but nothing managed to land.
Paul was caught by a piston-like jab early on, but capitalised with a check left hook. Jones Jr started to throw heavy haymakers to the body with success to back his opponent up, before a right uppercut from orthodox added more damage. However, Paul caught his foe on the way in with a straight right which sent him packing – followed up by an overhand right which sent Jones Jr to the canvas. The veteran made the count, but was visibly shaken.
Jones Jr still looked to be on shaky legs when he was clocked with a lead left hook, but knowing he needed to make up for a lost round, he still decided to pile the pressure on. Paul caught him with a well-timed counter on the way in with his left hand, before Jones Jr found success with a three-piece combo to the head.
Two chances for Jones Jr to finish the fight there and then emerged at the end of the sixth round, but the more experienced fighter shockingly chose not to pounce on them. A slip and rip right hand wobbled Paul as the round drew to a close, but Jones Jr decided not to go in for the finish – potentially due to the threat of being caught in his entrance. As the clackers sounded for ten seconds left, Jones Jr found another right hand which sent Paul skating, but he was ultimately saved by the bell this time.
Jones Jr found his range with a stunning jab before piling on brazen combinations. He winded Paul with another left hook to the liver, but the content creator held his ground and started to fire back. The two went toe-to-toe throwing everything they had left at one another as the round ended.
Both men were visibly tired as the eighth and final round came a-knocking, both looking sheepish despite not knowing where they stood on the scorecards. Jones Jr found success with a rocket of a right midway through the round, but with little else as the time eclipsed on the fight.
The ringside judges all scored the contest 76-75 in Paul’s favour – handing him a unanimous decision win over yet another veteran of the game. The judges all also saw the fight the exact same way in terms of round by round scoring, giving Paul rounds one, two, four and five – including a 10-8 difference-maker in the fourth on account of his knockdown.
Who knows how a fight between the two men would actually unfold should they ever meet in the squared-circle, but if the simulation we ran actually comes to fruition, we doubt that fight fans would be surprised given the age and ring rust of Jones Jr compared to his far more active and fitter opponent.
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