Jake Paul defeats UFC legend Nate Diaz by unanimous decision in Dallas boxing match as YouTube superstar-turned-superstar knocks down opponent in fifth to bounce back after losing to Tommy Fury

Nate Diaz had the audience. He just never had the judges, who awarded Jake Paul a hard-fought unanimous decision Saturday night at the American Airlines Center in Dallas.

In what was an obvious choice for everyone but the throng of disappointed Diaz fans, Paul’s 10-round effort was too much to ignore. Not only did he beat the UFC legend in the fifth, but he was easily better in all but one or two rounds as he bounced back from his first professional loss to Tommy Fury, whom he then named as a potential future opponent.

For Paul, whose status as a social media influencer was mentioned before the fight by ring announcer Jimmy Lennon Jr., there is always a question of legitimacy as a boxer.

But on Saturday in Dallas, Paul was favored for a reason: his seven career fights compared to Diaz’s zero.

Diaz’s MMA background was hard to ignore on Saturday. Even the Stockton, California native joked afterwards about getting Paul short in the ninth inning.

Paul (left) defeats crowd favorite Diaz in the fifth round after starting the fight very fast

Paul lands a left punch on his rival, sending him to the canvas, but he manages to get back up

Diaz impressed the crowd by recovering from his knockdown, but it wasn’t enough to win

Understandably, Diaz looked like the first-round rookie. Paul rushed out of his corner, pushed the action and completely dictated the first three minutes.

Given the left-handed-Orthodox matchup, there were a few tricky entanglements early on. But that ugliness aside, Paul looked like the real boxer in the first as Diaz tried to get his bearings.

“I wish I could have done better,” said Diaz after falling to 0-1 as a boxer.

But Diaz – who had the support of the UFC-centered crowd throughout the fight – came alive in the second. By the third, he and Paul were about tied in punches landed, and Diaz definitely won the fourth, landing 20 power punches to Paul’s 13, according to CompuBox.

Paul climbs the ropes to celebrate in front of a crowd that has been booing him all night

Diaz was knocked down in the fifth, but managed to recover and continue to the end of the fight

After the fight, Paul called for an MMA rematch and insisted he needed $10 million to make it happen

Diaz seemed to tire in the fifth, however, as Paul scored a relatively easy knockdown with a strong left hook.

And fatigue was to be expected for someone competing in MMA at around 170 pounds. At Friday’s weigh-in, Diaz was close to the 185-pound catch limit, and that seemed to become a factor as the night wore on.

Diaz wasn’t done yet. He had a resurgent eight round, connecting on back-to-back uppercuts and landing another one later in the round before giving Paul a light headbutt to end the frame. Overall, Diaz defeated Paul 26 to 17 in the eighth and maintained the pressure in the ninth.

But it wasn’t nearly enough for the win, and the judges’ decision reflected that.