Jake Paul seems to have the Midas touch, turning everything he touches into gold.
At 27, the American is a successful actor, YouTuber, entrepreneur and professional boxer, and now co-founder of the Professional Fighters League Super Fight Division.
The promotion launched the first PFL Super Fight Championship Belt, which brings two title contests, between former UFC heavyweight champion Francis Ngannou and Renan Ferreira, and female MMA stars Cris Cyborg and Larissa Pacheo, to Saudi Arabia on October 19.
Paul was at the press conference last month to announce the Riyadh event along with the two heavyweight title contenders Ngannou and Ferreira.
“I think it’s great what the PFL and I have partnered to do, just to help fighters make more money and put them on a big stage,” Paul told The National in a Zoom interview.
“It’s gonna be amazing to have our first one in Riyadh with Francis Ngannou and Renan Ferreira and this fight is gonna be absolutely massive. They're massive and it's the 'Battle of the Giants'.
“These guys are huge and I believe someone's gonna get knocked out. Yeah, that's an exciting fight and you have two title fights with the co-main event being the Pacheo versus Cyborg. We are still filling out the rest of the card.”
Saudi Arabia has emerged as a hot spot for a wide variety of high-profile sporting events with Paul endorsing it as the right place to launch the PFL Super Fight Championship.
“I think the fight fans there love Francis, and I think it's a perfect spot for him to fight and it's just always exciting and this is going to be a massive fight. So it needed a massive place like Saudi Arabia to put the show on,” he said.
Ngannou became a recognised name among Saudi fans after his appearances in two high-profile heavyweight boxing bouts in the kingdom, against Tyson Fury in October 2023 and Anthony Joshua six months later.
“The fight game is developing in the kingdom and it's becoming more and more usual to go there and I think they have a ton of fight fans, which is the most important thing for a fight city,” Paul said.
“You need the fans to show up to all the events and that's what keeps happening there and the events keep on getting better and better.”
MMA, in particular, is growing in the region and Paul wants to widen the horizon for the PFL Super Fight Championship with Abu Dhabi and Dubai as prospective host cities for future events.
“There have definitely been conversations behind the scenes of going to Abu Dhabi or going to Dubai,” he said.
“I would love to take a fight there, and I have a lot of fans in both those places, so I think it'd be really fun.”
However, Paul may have to skip the first PFL Super Fight Championship in Riyadh as it clashes with his preparation for his boxing bout against former heavyweight world champion Mike Tyson on November 15 at the IT&T Stadium in Arlington, Texas.
“It's going to be a legendary historic night with 90,000 people at AT&T Stadium,” he said, when asked of his meeting with Tyson.
“It will be the most viewed fight ever. Just to even say that is very surreal and I know Mike is my toughest and strongest opponent yet.
“I have to move up to heavyweight and I believe he's going to be dangerous for the first half of the fight and then I believe I'll be able to stop him in the second half.”
Tyson is one of the most feared heavyweight champions in history and more than 30 years Paul's senior.
“No, it definitely matters,” Paul said when asked about the age difference. “I think it's the equaliser, right? I have youth, but he has experience and so many more years of boxing, so many more fights.
“He has the weight, me moving up to heavyweight, and then I believe he's more powerful. So that's what makes this a 50-50 fight in my opinion. The age is sort of my advantage.”
Paul has also signed up for PFL to compete as a professional MMA fighter in 2025 but his first appearance in the cage will have to come after his match against Tyson.
“They are trying to find a fight for me and find a name. It's just been difficult to find someone with a big enough name that makes sense. I’m sure that day will come,” he said of a possible MMA debut.
Paul hasn’t started MMA training as he’s been focused on his boxing and the upcoming match.
“Boxing takes up so much of my time tight now,” he said. “We will see, you know, it all depends on being able to find the right opponent and the timing but I'm ready whenever to make a big fight in MMA and obviously with the PFL, it's gonna be huge.”
Paul is confident PFL and the Super Fight Championships will be successful.
“I just have to put on my promotional hat and help promote the fight in the pay-per-view and get my fans excited and to be a part of the storyline and to do what all the other promoters do,” he said.
“PFL is already the second biggest MMA promotion behind the UFC. And obviously the UFC is massive, but I believe the PFL over the next couple of years will start to eat the UFC's lunch and we basically will keep on growing and growing.
“We already took their biggest star in Francis and I think other fighters will see Francis make tens of millions of dollars over here and look at their bank accounts at the UFC.
“They'll be like ‘Hey! I need to go over to the PFL and get what I'm worth.’ And the more fighters that do that, the bigger we're going to get and then I'm going to start fighting in MMA and the rest is history.”
More coverage from the Future Forum
SPAIN SQUAD
Goalkeepers Simon (Athletic Bilbao), De Gea (Manchester United), Sanchez (Brighton)
Defenders Gaya (Valencia), Alba (Barcelona), P Torres (Villarreal), Laporte (Manchester City), Garcia (Manchester City), D Llorente (Leeds), Azpilicueta (Chelsea)
Midfielders Busquets (Barcelona), Rodri (Manchester City), Pedri (Barcelona), Thiago (Liverpool), Koke (Atletico Madrid), Ruiz (Napoli), M Llorente (Atletico Madrid)
Forwards: Olmo (RB Leipzig), Oyarzabal (Real Sociedad), Morata (Juventus), Moreno (Villarreal), F Torres (Manchester City), Traore (Wolves), Sarabia (PSG)
Zayed Sustainability Prize
Why are asylum seekers being housed in hotels?
The number of asylum applications in the UK has reached a new record high, driven by those illegally entering the country in small boats crossing the English Channel.
A total of 111,084 people applied for asylum in the UK in the year to June 2025, the highest number for any 12-month period since current records began in 2001.
Asylum seekers and their families can be housed in temporary accommodation while their claim is assessed.
The Home Office provides the accommodation, meaning asylum seekers cannot choose where they live.
When there is not enough housing, the Home Office can move people to hotels or large sites like former military bases.
Copa del Rey
Barcelona v Real Madrid
Semi-final, first leg
Wednesday (midnight UAE)
The specs: 2018 Infiniti QX80
Price: base / as tested: Dh335,000
Engine: 5.6-litre V8
Gearbox: Seven-speed automatic
Power: 400hp @ 5,800rpm
Torque: 560Nm @ 4,000rpm
Fuel economy, combined: 12.1L / 100km
Napoleon
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On the menu
First course
▶ Emirati sea bass tartare Yuzu and labneh mayo, avocado, green herbs, fermented tomato water
▶ The Tale of the Oyster Oyster tartare, Bahraini gum berry pickle
Second course
▶ Local mackerel Sourdough crouton, baharat oil, red radish, zaatar mayo
▶ One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest Quail, smoked freekeh, cinnamon cocoa
Third course
▶ Bahraini bouillabaisse Venus clams, local prawns, fishfarm seabream, farro
▶ Lamb 2 ways Braised lamb, crispy lamb chop, bulgur, physalis
Dessert
▶ Lumi Black lemon ice cream, pistachio, pomegranate
▶ Black chocolate bar Dark chocolate, dates, caramel, camel milk ice cream
Pad Man
Dir: R Balki
Starring: Akshay Kumar, Sonam Kapoor, Radhika Apte
Three-and-a-half stars
Juvenile arthritis
Along with doctors, families and teachers can help pick up cases of arthritis in children.
Most types of childhood arthritis are known as juvenile idiopathic arthritis. JIA causes pain and inflammation in one or more joints for at least six weeks.
Dr Betina Rogalski said "The younger the child the more difficult it into pick up the symptoms. If the child is small, it may just be a bit grumpy or pull its leg a way or not feel like walking,” she said.
According to The National Institute of Arthritis and Musculoskeletal and Skin Diseases in US, the most common symptoms of juvenile arthritis are joint swelling, pain, and stiffness that doesn’t go away. Usually it affects the knees, hands, and feet, and it’s worse in the morning or after a nap.
Limping in the morning because of a stiff knee, excessive clumsiness, having a high fever and skin rash are other symptoms. Children may also have swelling in lymph nodes in the neck and other parts of the body.
Arthritis in children can cause eye inflammation and growth problems and can cause bones and joints to grow unevenly.
In the UK, about 15,000 children and young people are affected by arthritis.
What is Genes in Space?
Genes in Space is an annual competition first launched by the UAE Space Agency, The National and Boeing in 2015.
It challenges school pupils to design experiments to be conducted in space and it aims to encourage future talent for the UAE’s fledgling space industry. It is the first of its kind in the UAE and, as well as encouraging talent, it also aims to raise interest and awareness among the general population about space exploration.
The specs
- Engine: 3.9-litre twin-turbo V8
- Power: 640hp
- Torque: 760nm
- On sale: 2026
- Price: Not announced yet
Naga
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UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
Six large-scale objects on show
- Concrete wall and windows from the now demolished Robin Hood Gardens housing estate in Poplar
- The 17th Century Agra Colonnade, from the bathhouse of the fort of Agra in India
- A stagecloth for The Ballet Russes that is 10m high – the largest Picasso in the world
- Frank Lloyd Wright’s 1930s Kaufmann Office
- A full-scale Frankfurt Kitchen designed by Margarete Schütte-Lihotzky, which transformed kitchen design in the 20th century
- Torrijos Palace dome
Benefits of first-time home buyers' scheme
- Priority access to new homes from participating developers
- Discounts on sales price of off-plan units
- Flexible payment plans from developers
- Mortgages with better interest rates, faster approval times and reduced fees
- DLD registration fee can be paid through banks or credit cards at zero interest rates
Dengue%20fever%20symptoms
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KILLING OF QASSEM SULEIMANI
Red flags
- Promises of high, fixed or 'guaranteed' returns.
- Unregulated structured products or complex investments often used to bypass traditional safeguards.
- Lack of clear information, vague language, no access to audited financials.
- Overseas companies targeting investors in other jurisdictions - this can make legal recovery difficult.
- Hard-selling tactics - creating urgency, offering 'exclusive' deals.
Courtesy: Carol Glynn, founder of Conscious Finance Coaching
Results
Ashraf Ghani 50.64 per cent
Abdullah Abdullah 39.52 per cent
Gulbuddin Hekmatyar 3.85 per cent
Rahmatullah Nabil 1.8 per cent
KILLING OF QASSEM SULEIMANI
UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
Zayed Sustainability Prize
The five pillars of Islam
1. Fasting
2. Prayer
3. Hajj
4. Shahada
5. Zakat
Best Foreign Language Film nominees
Capernaum (Lebanon)
Cold War (Poland)
Never Look Away (Germany)
Roma (Mexico)
Shoplifters (Japan)
The five pillars of Islam
