Jake Paul offered another ex-foe fight on Ronda Rousey card, but approach was rejected

Mike Perry and Nate Diaz weren’t the only former foes of Jake Paul to be offered a spot on the Ronda Rousey vs Gina Carano undercard.

‘The Problem Child’ also approached MMA legend Anderson Silva to support the inter-generational women’s super fight on May 16 in Los Angeles.

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Silva has become something of a fixture on Paul’s Most Valuable Promotions (MVP) shows.

He dropped a unanimous decision to Paul four years in the squared circle and also competed on the YouTuber’s undercard for his fight against Anthony Joshua at the back end of last year.

When MVP beat the UFC to Rousey vs Carano, Silva was one of the first fighters they reached out to feature on the bill.

However, the former UFC middleweight champion turned down the offer.

During an apperance on the Ariel Helwani Show on Monday night, he explained why.

“Nakisa [Bidarian] (Paul’s business partner) invited me to come [and compete on the card] in MMA or kickboxing,” said Silva.

“But because I’m in this process now [becoming a police officer], to study, to keep my mind working on the one thing, I just say, ‘Oh, I can’t this time.’

“But when I finish the whole thing, I will probably have one or two more fights, only boxing.

“I don’t have a mind anymore to train in MMA—it’s just too hard for me to get back to training MMA.

“Of course, I train jiu-jitsu every day. I train in boxing two days a week. But MMA, no, not anymore.”

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While Silva would have certainly boosted the undercard, the bill isn’t short of big names.

Former UFC and PFL heavyweight champion Francis Ngannou takes on 2018 PFL tournament winner Philipe Lins in the co-main event.

Kickboxing legend Rico Verhoeven had been lined up as Ngannou’s original opponent, but he chose to box Oleksand Usyk instead.

Elsewhere, there is a spot for Diaz and Perry, who lock horns in a welterweight clash.

Diaz has not competed in MMA since 2022, while bare-knuckle boxing standout Perry will end an even longer four-year hiatus.