Askren Will ‘Feel Much Better’ About Himself If Paul Beats Woodley

Ben Askren is rooting for his friend Tyron Woodley to beat Jake Paul, but his wounded ego might heal if the reverse comes true.

Ben Askren expects former Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) Welterweight champion Tyron Woodley to light up Jake Paul, but he might feel a little better about himself if the YouTuber comes out on top.

Paul vs. Woodley will headline Showtime Boxing’s pay-per-view event (PPV) on Aug. 29, 2021 (also streaming on FITE) inside Rocket Mortgage FieldHouse in Cleveland, Ohio. “Funky” is rooting for his good friend Woodley; however, there might be one good thing about a Paul victory.

“I’m still not under the conclusion that (Jake) is a good boxer. He hit me one time really good, but it wasn’t like he beat me soundly over six rounds. He does hit hard, I guess we’ll give him credit for that,” Askren told TMZ Sports (h/t Middle Easy). “If he’s able to beat Tyron, I will probably feel much better about what happened to me, because I’ll think damn, Tyron’s really good. I think that’s probably unlikely, but in that case, that’s probably what I’d think.”

Askren (19-2-0-1 in MMA, 0-1 in boxing) suffered a first-round knockout (KO) loss to Paul (3-0 in boxing) when the two clashed on April 17. Woodley (19-7-1 in MMA) has the chance to avenge Askren when he makes his professional boxing debut against Paul on Sun., Aug. 29.

For the complete Jake Paul vs. Tyron Woodley fight card click here. For more news and notes on their upcoming grudge match click here.