Jake Paul warns Dana White ‘there’s a movement’ to address ‘s**tty’ UFC contracts

Jake Paul isn’t done going 12 rounds with Dana White.

The popular YouTube star continued his campaign to get better compensation for fighters, which has become a mission for Paul as he’s parlayed his fame into big boxing paydays for himself and his opponents. Paul is next set to box former UFC welterweight champion Tyron Woodley, and according to Woodley, he’s getting paid more than he did for any of his 27 MMA fights.

On Thursday, Paul and Woodley faced off at a gym in Miami and added to the stakes of their Aug. 28 encounter with a proposed wager. Paul also took the opportunity to make a short speech directed at White in which he called out the UFC for what he believes to be inequitable business practices.

“There’s a movement, moving forward that is gonna show that fighters should be getting paid more,” Paul said in a video uploaded by former UFC fighter Jimi Manuwa. “It’s unfair. The UFC fighters don’t have fair pay. Out of all the sports, the percentage that the owners get versus the athlete, they’re the lowest. Francis Ngannou vs. Jon Jones, that fight should happen. Dana White, pay them the $10 million. He’s taking their money. They’re the ones making the content. They’re the ones getting in the ring, risking their life.”

Paul added that the high risk of injury in combat sports is another reason whey fighters deserve greater compensation, specifically bringing up the gruesome leg injury that former UFC middleweight champion Chris Weidman suffered at UFC 261.

“Chris Weidman goes in, snaps his leg in half,” Paul said. “What’s that look like? He might never be able to fight again and provide food for his family. These fighters are risking their lives. You can quite literally die in the ring and they need to be compensated more. I’m a big proponent of that movement and being in control. It’s just like music labels, same thing. These artists are getting owned and they get locked up into these s**tty contracts and they don’t know what to do.

“So f**k that sh*t. F**k Dana White.”

This isn’t the first time that Paul has criticized White and the UFC over fighter pay. He landed squarely on the promotion’s radar after drawing the ire of UFC commentator Daniel Cormier (and a packed house at VyStar Veterans Memorial Arena in Jacksonville, Fla.) at UFC 261, which led to Paul and White going back-and-forth through the media. Paul called White out over the disparity in compensation between the top fighters in boxing and the top fighters in the UFC.

In a recent interview on the You’re Welcome podcast, Paul said he would be open to working with White if the price is right. It appears there are still fences that need to be mended before that partnership ever happens.