Jake Paul has seemingly been told by a boxer hoping to become ‘the next Katie Taylor’ that she wouldn’t completely rule out a fight against him.

Lauren Price has openly expressed her ambition to emulate the success of Taylor – and has admitted she would be open to fighting social media influencers given the money on offer. When asked about a hypothetical offer to fight Paul, Price joked: “I don’t know.”

Price’s remarkable journey saw her claim victory over US star Jessica McCaskill for the WBA and IBO welterweight titles in May, adding to her already impressive resume which includes a gold medal from the 2020 Olympic Games in Tokyo, triumphs at the 2019 European Games in Minsk, the 2018 Gold Coast Commonwealth Games, and the 2019 World Championships in Ulan-Ude.

Having only turned professional two years ago, Price stunned the boxing community by defeating McCaskill with a ninth-round technical decision earlier this year. With an unblemished 7-0 record, she’s not shy about her aspirations to follow in the footsteps of undisputed lightweight champion Taylor.

In a recent interview with Seconds Out, after setting her sights on Natasha Jonas and her IBF welterweight belt, Price praised Jonas, saying: “I respect Tasha, I think what she’s done for boxing is fantastic. She’s a great ambassador, a great role model, and I respect her as a fighter.”

She added: “I want to become undisputed, and I want to create a legacy. And I want to just go on now in the prime of my career and that’s all I want is those big fights. That’s why I turned pro, you know? I want to follow in the footsteps of Katie Taylor’s. What she’s done for Ireland, I want to do that for Wales,” reports the Irish Star.

Taylor, who clinched a gold medal at the 2012 Olympics, turned professional in November 2016 with a bang, securing a third-round TKO victory against Karina Kopinska. Following a similar trajectory as Price, Taylor nabbed her first title in her seventh pro bout, taking home the WBA belt in 2017 after a unanimous decision win over Anahi Ester Sanchez.

Lauren Price became a champion earlier this year

Lauren Price became a champion earlier this year ( 

Image:

Getty Images)

Zooming ahead to 2024, Taylor boasts an impressive 24-1 record with six knockouts. Her latest triumph was defending her undisputed collection of WBA, WBC, IBF, WBO, and IBO belts against Amanda Serrano, featured as the co-main event for Jake Paul’s talked-about Netflix clash with Mike Tyson earlier this month.

Discussing Taylor’s fight with Serrano and the overall event, Price added: “I mean yeah, it’s an odd one isn’t it? And like when you look at it, they were on Netflix, they got paid six million or whatever they got paid, and I’m chuffed for them, what they’ve done for the sport in general.

“It’s always hard around this influencer boxer kind of thing, but if they said to me ‘You’re fighting an influencer’ and I’m getting a s— load of money, then yeah, I would do it, because I’ve realised in boxing, in showbiz, it’s a business and it’s about money, and it doesn’t matter how many accolades you’ve got or who you are.

Price didn't watch the Paul vs Tyson fight

Price didn’t watch the Paul vs Tyson fight ( 

Image:

AP)

“Sometimes it’s about your following, or if you’re a YouTuber and that’s just the way the world is. Don’t get me wrong, it’s sad – it is. But I get it and I’m chuffed for Taylor and Serrano. Don’t get me wrong, it would have been good for them to fight on a… I suppose they’ve done Madison Square Garden.

“It would have been great for Katie to come back and fight in Croke Park. That’s what she wants and I believe she deserves that for the career she’s had. I didn’t watch the Jake Paul and the fight you know, but I heard that Tyson…I suppose age it just says that you shouldn’t really step back into the ring, but I suppose when you’re getting paid a lot of money it depends on how much you want that and whether you want to risk your health. I don’t know.”

The conversation shifted focus, touching on who Price might face off with in the ring – perhaps a female counterpart to Paul or ‘The Problem Child’ himself. Price admitted: “Nahh, I don’t know. I’ll be honest with you, I don’t follow it. I don’t watch it if I’m honest – I don’t know anyone out there. Obviously I know Jake Paul but I’m not a massive fan on it. But you know, when you’re getting paid the money they get paid, I can see why they do it.”