Scott Coker: “I already know who’s gonna win” Ben Askren vs. Jake Paul fight

Bellator MMA President Scott Coker believes he knows how a rumored boxing match between Ben Askren and Jake Paul will go down.

Askren claims that he’s in talks to fight Paul in March. While he previously reigned as the Bellator and ONE Championship welterweight titleholder and is a decorated wrestler, he’s never been much of a striker, and is widely expected to be at a disadvantage in a boxing match against the YouTube star turned pro boxer, Paul.

Coker certainly believes that’s the case.

“I already know who’s gonna win that one,” Coker told MMA Junkie. “Ben’s a wrestler, let’s put it that way, right? So I think he gets knocked out in a boxing fight. But in an MMA fight, it’s a different story.”

While Jake Paul and his brother Logan have recently risen to prominence as boxers, both also have high school wrestling backgrounds. Coker seems to think that the pair’s varied combat sports skillsets could translate into some success in MMA in the future.

“I know the Paul brothers can do both,” Coker said. “Jake is a real wrestler (and) can box now. You have boxing and you have wrestling, just learn the anti-jiu-jitsu techniques that Frank and Ken Shamrock used to teach back in the day and you’ll be fine. Don’t worry, you’ll be good.”

Despite this lack of confidence from Scott Coker, Ben Askren is very confident he’ll be able to hand Jake Paul a loss in the boxing ring—if they actually end up fighting.

“I’m a world-class athlete, I’ve won NCAA titles, I’ve been in the Olympics, I’ve won belts in multiple mixed martial arts organizations,” Askren said on social media on Tuesday. “And quite frankly, I am impressed that you’ve deluded yourself into thinking you’re a fighter. That you are really tough, that you can really box. It’s really quite impressive that beating up another YouTuber and beating up a boxer who has never been in the ring before makes you somehow good at boxing because it doesn’t. So yes, Jake, I accept. I will see you on March 28 in Los Angeles, and I will humble you like millions of people want to see happen.”

Do you think Ben Askren can pull of a win against Jake Paul, or are you with Scott Coker on this one?