Tommy Fury defeats Jake Paul by split decision

Jake Paul is no longer an undefeated boxer.

Tommy Fury, the half-brother of heavyweight great Tyson Fury, beat Paul, the YouTubestar-turned-prizefighter, via split decision (74-75, 76-73, 76-73) on Sunday in Diriyah, Saudi Arabia.

Paul was more accurate, but Fury landed and threw more shots throughout the fight. However, Paul scored a knockdown in the eighth and final round off a jab to make it close. It wasn't enough to sway the judges.

"Tonight, I make my own legacy," Fury said. "I am Tommy Fury."

Per Compubox, Paul landed 49 of 157 punches (31%) and Fury connected on 88 of 302 blows (29%).

The bout was postponed twice, once after Fury suffered an injury, and again when the latter was denied entry to the U.S. due to his brother's connections with Daniel Kinahan. Ultimately the pair had to settle for Western Asia.

"This is my first main event," Fury said. "I'm only going to go stronger. I'm going to go bigger. I'm only going to go better.

"If he wants a rematch, bring it on."

The bout was mostly a snoozer until the middle rounds when referee Hector Afu got involved. In the fifth, he deducted a point from Paul for pushing Fury's head down in the clinch. Then, in the subsequent frame, Afu docked Fury for excessive clinching.

Things got a bit strange in the middle rounds. Referee Hector Afu deducted a point from Paul in the fifth for pushing Fury's head down in clinches. Then, in the sixth, Afu interjected himself again, taking a point from Fury for apparently too much clinching.

Paul appeared to tire out in the sixth and seventh rounds, and Fury used that to his advantage, connecting with combinations at will against Paul, who came back in the eighth round to floor Fury with a jab to give himself a shot at edging him on the scorecards.

Fury had a lot of success in the sixth and seventh rounds, using his reach and landing combinations against Paul, who appeared to be a bit tired. But Paul dug deep in the final round, dropping Fury with a jab and keeping himself in the bout. But alas, no cigar.

Paul has a rematch clause in the contract, and he intimated he will use it. He said he thought he won the fight and that he didn't agree with the scores. Paul added that he had had a health issue in training camp and was dealing with an arm injury.

Paul has indicated that he will exercise his contractual option to an immediate rematch.

For Fury (9-0, 4 KOs), 23, it marked the most significant win of the Englishman's pro career, which began back in December 2018.

Fury (9-0) is just 23 years old, and Paul was his first big-name opponent. The England native walked out in a robe honoring his newborn daughter, Bambi.

The 26-year-old Paul (6-1, 4 KOs), a Cleveland native who trains out of Puerto Rico, says he's not done with his pro boxing career.

"Don't judge me by my wins," Paul said. "Judge me by my losses. I'll come back. I think we deserve that rematch."