Jake Paul in the ring

Disclaimer: The following is speculative opinion and in no way, shape, or form factual testimony. But I’m willing to bet money it’s true.

Every once in a while, a story makes you wonder what you’re not being told. UFOs over Alaska. The sod at the Super Bowl. Humans are wired to look for conspiracies in everyday news. So when I saw that PRIME, the brand owned by KSI and Logan Paul, had become an official partner of the UFC, I jumped headfirst into the rabbit hole.

Remember when the Paul brothers said they were getting into professional fighting and everyone laughed it off? In hindsight, it’s a lot like when Donald Trump said he was running for president and no one took him seriously. Here we are, and the world is just breathing a sigh of relief after Jake Paul was handed his first loss. Nobody can look me in the eye and tell me something isn’t up with that timing.

The “Kardashian effect”

What’s the Paul brothers’ public image in fighting? Pure ire. They’ve trolled Dana White on every platform they can find, Jake snatched Floyd Mayweather’s hat off his head, and they’ve shown up to opponents’ homes to stir things up. Everyone who saw this content got understandably annoyed and hoped to see them get knocked out.

But here’s the thing: everyone was shamelessly indulging in it. I call it the “Kardashian effect,” where someone captivates people’s attention by doing the most materialistic, whatever-it-takes-for-the-click stuff. Do we blame the people creating this drivel, or do we have to look inward at why it’s the pinnacle of entertainment now?

… Sorry, I blacked out for a second.

The point is, whatever you think of the Paul brothers’ antics, they’ve gotten people to tune in.

Exhibit B: the WWE merger

Here’s another recent event to remember: the UFC just merged with, wait for it, the WWE.

Your honor, I’d like to enter into evidence the Jerry Lawler vs. Andy Kaufman feud.

Jerry Lawler and Andy Kaufman

For the uncultured: Andy Kaufman, the notorious comedian, got into a very public feud with wrestler Jerry Lawler in the early ’80s. It peaked on Late Night with David Letterman, when Kaufman got so verbally aggressive that Lawler slapped him on live TV.

What was revealed years later? Kaufman and Lawler were in on it together. They’d fabricated the whole feud to draw attention to wrestling, and everyone watching believed it.

My conclusion

Two brothers famous for acting like idiots enter a sport where their drink is an official sponsor, start public feuds with everyone involved, and that sport just merged with the WWE, an organization that has blurred reality and fiction since its inception.

Are the Paul brothers in the UFC just to promote their own drink? Is the fight world messing with all of us, tricking us into hating the Paul brothers so more people tune in?

I’m well aware that, as conspiracies go, the stakes here are about as low as they get. It still doesn’t feel like an integrity move. I despise everything the Paul brothers stand for, but no one can deny they know exactly what they’re doing to stay relevant, like a car wreck you can’t look away from.

Logan Paul trolling
Here's a picture of Logan Paul (parody law)

To close: I was drinking a PRIME while writing this. Official score: 6.7.

Jared ranked all five PRIME Energy flavors in PRIME Energy: Reviewed From Best to Worst. If you want to support the Paul brothers and Caffeine Shark, grab a pack on Amazon.