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EXCLUSIVE: Jake Paul appreciates Conor McGregor’s offer to sponsor Katie Taylor vs. Amanda Serrano in their historic rematch… but worries it was a ‘drunken tweet’
Jake Paul welcomed Conor McGregor’s offer to sponsor Katie Taylor’s highly anticipated rematch against Amanda Serrano, though he feared the Irishman would go back on his word.
Taylor and Serrano met in a historic fight at Madison Square Garden last year, with the former victorious by split decision. They have since agreed to do it again, with the fight scheduled for May 20 in Dublin.
The venue has yet to be finalized, with Taylor’s promoter Eddie Hearn revealing that the 80,000-plus seat Croke Park, the preferred location, would cost three times as much as hosting at Wembley.
The fight will certainly take place in Dublin, with the indoor 3Arena another viable option. However, last week McGregor took to social media to offer his help, saying: ‘The extra security bill is 500k for Katie Taylor to fight at Croke Park? I will sponsor the event to make it happen.’
Paul, who promotes Serrano, has accepted McGregor’s involvement and insists it would only generate more excitement for the fight.
Katie Taylor (left) and Amanda Serrano (right) are set for their rematch in Dublin in May.
Jake Paul (right) welcomed Conor McGregor’s (left) offer to sponsor the game on May 20.
“I think it’s amazing that he wants to do that, and it only makes the fight bigger if he gets involved on Katie Taylor’s side, cheering her on,” Paul told Sportsmail.
‘YO I think it’s great, but behind the scenes I don’t know if there’s been any progress with him actually doing that.
“I think it could have been a drunken tweet of his that he likes to do, but hopefully he was serious.”
However, Hearn will find out if McGregor is serious about his offer next week, as the pair meet at the Irish pub in Dublin on Monday.
The pair have discussed the possibility of McGregor sponsoring the fight on social media in recent days, and Hearn insists the offer was not a publicity stunt.
“I’ve spoken to him a few times and I’m flying over to see him in Black Forge on Monday,” Hearn revealed.
‘We have been communicating in Twitter messages. I noticed you followed me on Twitter and I saw your tweet that you want the Taylor fight at Croke Park to happen.
“He loves Katie Taylor and would love to help get her to Croke Park. I haven’t given up, but there’s probably a €600,000-£700,000 shortfall from where we need to be. Maybe he can fill that. But it’s not a publicity stunt, I think he feels it would be cool to be a part of it.”
McGregor made an offer to sponsor the Taylor-Serrano fight on Twitter last week.
Hearn will speak with McGregor next week to find out if his involvement is viable.
Taylor (left) is looking forward to her rematch against Amanda Serrano (right) which will take place at Croke Park
Hearn also raised the possibility of fighting Serrano at the 3Arena, with a September fight against Chantelle Cameron in September and then at Croke Park, in which McGregor would be involved.
Taylor, 36, has won all of his 22 professional bouts to date, but has yet to fight in Ireland. The current undisputed lightweight champion has held the WBA title since 2017, the IBF title since 2018, and the WBC, WBO and The Ring magazine titles since 2019.
Serrano (44-2-1) defeated Erika Cruz by unanimous decision in New York earlier this month to become the undisputed featherweight champion.
The Puerto Rican is now moving back up to lightweight for a historic rematch against Taylor.
Paul, meanwhile, switches from promoter to fighter on February 26 when he takes on longtime rival Tommy Fury in Saudi Arabia.