Jake Paul vs Ben Askren: Fighters react to Jake Paul’s TKO win over Ben Askren

Jake Paul did more or less as he promised tonight, stopping Ben Askren in the first round of their Triller Fight Club main event from Atlanta.

The stoppage was questionable, with referee Askren getting dropped but taking a mandatory eight count from referee Brian Stutts, who then examined Askren further and decided to stop the fight at 1:59 of the opening round.

Askren probably could have continued, but that’s not to say it was going to get any better for him. He didn’t really look to have much of a plan, and for the level he’s fighting at (a very low one, let’s be real), Paul is composed and confident, and he has good power.

But it is what it is. This is a celebrity sideshow, and it’s fine if Paul and Triller want to promote it otherwise, but Paul has still not fought an actual boxer in a boxing match. When he wonders how many times he has to “do this” before people take him seriously, the answer is in that fact, but as long as it’s churning money, he won’t actually have to do it.

Anyway, there were a few fighter reactions on Twitter. Not many, but a few.