Tommy Fury beat Jake Paul by an eight-round split decision in their much hyped boxing match on Sunday night. Paul, who made his fortune as a YouTube prankster before turning his hands to boxing in recent years, had got off to a respectable start to his fighting career before Sunday, compiling a 6-0 record, although some of his opponents were of debatable quality. Triller Fight Club: Jake Paul v Ben Askren<br>ATLANTA, GEORGIA - APRIL 17: Jake Paul celebrates after defeating Ben Askren in their cruiserweight bout during Triller Fight Club at Mercedes-Benz Stadium on April 17, 2021 in Atlanta, Georgia. (Photo by Al Bello/Getty Images for Triller) Jake Paul’s vapid boxing cosplay is a farce the sport could learn from Read more Fury was a tougher test. While Paul is a social media personality with a sideline in boxing, Fury is a boxer with a sideline in social media. He is the younger half-brother of world heavyweight champion Tyson Fury and was undefeated coming into his fight with Paul, winning all nine of his fights, four by knockout. But to many people, in the UK at least, he is more famous for finishing as a runner-up in the fifth season of Love Island.
The fight, almost inevitably, took place in the home of dubious sporting projects, Saudi Arabia. The bout had twice been postponed, once when Fury suffered an injury in the build-up to the fight and again last summer when the Briton was denied entry into the US. The fight went as many expected with Fury controlling long periods thanks to his effective jab that allowed him to survive some scrappy aggression from Paul. The 26-year-old American even dropped his opponent in the eighth round but Fury had done enough by then to secure victory by split decision (74-75, 76-73, 76-73). Fury was docked a point for excessive clinching while the referee took a point from Paul for holding down his opponent’s head during a clinch. According to CompuBox, Fury landed 88 of his 302 punches, far more than Paul, who connected with 49 of his 157 blows. Fury seemed to have a slight edge throughout most of the fight, but Paul was right in the mix and landed plenty of great punches of his own. Both fighters had a point deducted in the later rounds, too, for seemingly landing a punch to the back of the other’s head. It was in the eighth round, however, when Paul bounced back and made his move after a slow seventh. Paul came out early with a left-handed jab that sent Fury stumbling back and down to the mat briefly — which marked the first and only knockdown of the bout.
“I’ve already won every single way in life,” Paul said after the fight. “I made it farther than I ever thought I would, and beyond. This is a humbling experience. I’ll take it on the chin and come back.” “But I lost. I’m not making excuses,” Paul said. “I’m just saying it wasn’t my best performance. I fell flat.” “All the way through these 2 1/2 years, I had a dream, I had a vision that I would win this fight, and no one believed me,” an emotional Fury said in the ring after his win. “Now I can stand up and everybody can take note. In my first main event, at 23 years old, I had the world on me. I had pressure on my shoulders, and I came through.”
