The Herd with Colin Cowherd – THE W.A.D.E. Concept: Week in Review

Date: November 30, 2025

Episode Title: KSI Praises Jake Paul, Canelo vs Crawford Rematch, Khabib Caught Scamming, and Jake Paul's Secret Weapon

Episode Overview

This episode of The Herd features a comprehensive, opinionated breakdown of the hottest controversies and topics in boxing and MMA. Hosted under the W.A.D.E. Concept by The Ring Magazine, it dives into:

• KSI’s surprising respect for Jake Paul as he prepares to face Anthony Joshua.
• The potential Canelo Alvarez vs. Terence Crawford rematch.
• Khabib Nurmagomedov’s involvement in multiple alleged crypto scams and questionable business deals.
• Jake Paul’s secret strategies ahead of his massive showdown with heavyweight champ Anthony Joshua.

The tone is direct, sharp, and, at times, humorous. The host isn’t afraid to challenge conventional takes, call out hypocrisy, or poke fun when deserved.

Key Discussion Points & Insights

1. KSI Gives Jake Paul His Props for Facing AJ (Anthony Joshua)

Timestamps: 03:27–13:33

• KSI (“Jake is fighting AJ. And you know what? I'm going to give him props.” 05:14)

  • KSI uncharacteristically respects Jake's willingness to fight a heavyweight world champion.
  • The Sidemen and host banter about the lopsided physical matchup (“AJ by soap being dropped in prison. AJ by brutal Bonnie Blue scene…” – Sidemen, 05:30).
  • The group agrees: while AJ is heavily favored, Jake has nothing to lose except possible serious injury.
  • Discussion on the risks of repeated trauma vs. a single knockout in boxing (host references scientific realities of boxing damage, 06:03).
  • KSI repeatedly notes the payday is a major factor but the risk is real (“Surely you've got the confidence to know that. Like, I'm gonna bum him. I will not be paying to view that.” – Sidemen, 08:26).
  • Big “money fight” confirmation: AJ is earning his second biggest payday ever from the Paul fight, despite all his past title bouts (09:00).

• Marketability and Career Stakes

  • The host: Jake’s status will survive—even grow—unless AJ seriously injures him. Losses to other influencers (like KSI or Tommy Fury) hurt Jake’s brand more than losing to a former unified heavyweight champion (09:39–10:51).
  • “It's the entertainment business and these Netflix fights are made for a massive audience.” (09:39)

2. Can Jake Paul Even Survive Against AJ?

Timestamps: 11:00–15:10

• The panel debates Jake’s chances.

  • Host: “People believe Jake has this ulterior motive to fights, and they just haven't accepted the reality that he's batshit crazy.” (12:08)
  • Sidemen: "You have to be that deluded. You can't even have any clean of thought legitimately thinking, I can beat you." (12:54)
  • Jake’s motivation isn’t only the money—he reportedly turned down $40-50 million for a lesser fight (vs. Gervonta Davis) and instead sought the greatest challenge (13:15).
  • KSI: “End of the year, we need something...Javonte Davis is out. We've got nothing left...AJ is there. He's down.” (13:31)

• Purse Split: Who Gets Paid Most?

  • Host: “No, AJ did not get more than Jake for this fight. No shot...Jake is the A side and Anthony Joshua is going to get a handsome fee. But...Jake's going to get paid more.” (13:58)

3. Slight Support for Jake—Chances and Consequences

Timestamps: 15:10–15:56

• Host references Tyron Woodley interview, noting Woodley doesn’t write Jake off entirely.
  • “I don't think there's no chance Jake can win. I think that's a pretty reasonable take...But you can't rule out a chance. Even though I think we're talking 1–2% here, we're talking Hail Mary from the gods.” (15:12)
  • The consensus: it’s a mismatch, but as always, there’s a puncher’s chance.

4. Canelo Alvarez vs. Terence Crawford Rematch Talks

Timestamps: 15:56–26:51

• The host questions the logic of a rematch for 2026: “My only question is why? Why? Outside of a massive payday, the first fight wasn't necessarily a competitive fight.” (15:56)
  • Canelo wants redemption but the host doubts the matchup will be any closer second time around (breakdown of the reasons Canelo struggled, 17:30+).
  • If Canelo is to change the outcome, he’d have to “fight Terence Crawford like he fought Sergey Kovalev at 175. That’s genuinely what he would have to do. He’d have to be lighter on his feet, he’d have to throw more combinations.” (20:08)
  • Memorable moment: “I think the matchup's all wrong for Canelo. I think this style of fight in terms of what Terence Crawford does well is counterpunching off the front and back foot, his ability to go from range with his jab, be inside with it too...He’s got just a different timing than Canelo really has on his punches...bad matchup for Canelo. We've seen it already. And I just don't know if the rematch goes any differently.” (26:13)

5. Khabib Nurmagomedov: Crypto Scams and Shady Business?

Timestamps: 26:51–64:55

• Host’s thesis: Khabib, long seen as “MMA’s good guy,” is repeatedly involved in promoting questionable or outright scam crypto projects, NFTs, and other dubious business endeavors.

• Breaks down Khabib’s recent “Papaka” Telegram NFT project—a digital collectible with unclear value, auctioned under a guise of tradition and gifting (36:14).

  • Memorable host quote: “He keeps calling it a gift when in reality it is something that he sold at auction...This one's a borderline scam. He's not providing you with anything of value. He's not even providing you with what an NFT normally would be...you're buying an emoji, essentially.” (36:14)
  • The host blasts Khabib for using his late father’s name and Dagestani culture for marketing (35:19–36:14).
  • Conor McGregor reignites their rivalry on social media, accusing Khabib of scamming fans and using his father’s legacy.

• Pattern of Questionable Projects:

  • Reviews previous involvements:
    • GMT Token ("joint product" to mine Bitcoin for you)—collapsed with investors left holding worthless tokens.
    • “Khabib Gold Cards” NFTs—no value delivered.
    • Host: “At a certain point, are you not just a scammer as well?” (49:07)
    • Repeated rug pulls and dump patterns; ongoing promotion of “Multibank IO” token, which also tanked.
    • Other projects mentioned: Game Plan, ICE Open Network, Waheed Private Real Estate, Arena 2—all have major issues or have led to investor losses.
  • Host calls out the selective morality and lack of accountability: “If we're going to address everything that's wrong with Conor McGregor...or Jon Jones...should we not keep the same energy for someone like Khabib who was supposed to be the beacon, supposed to be the most honorable of all of us?” (53:10)
  • Host’s verdict: “Do I think Khabib is a crypto scammer? Yeah, I do. Do I think he should stop doing it? Yeah, I do. But if you guys are dumb enough to buy it, you're going to keep getting this result anyway.” (64:55)

6. Jake Paul’s Secret Weapon for Anthony Joshua

Timestamps: 69:03–86:10

• The host teases that Jake Paul might not be as easy an opponent for AJ as most believe, and that Jake has gone above and beyond prepping for this opportunity.
  • Preparation:
    • Jake sparred Cassius Chaney (previously due to fight AJ).
    • He assembled a sparring camp of legitimate heavyweights: Jared “Big Baby” Anderson, Frank Sanchez, and Lawrence Okolie (“This picture is fucking insane...Jake looks like a youngster that hasn't quite fully grown into heavyweight, when in reality this is as big as he's going to get.” 75:01).
    • Host applauds Jake’s willingness to get battered by world-level big men: “I have to say, Jake's cajones can no longer be denied.”
  • Secret Weapon:
    • Rumor: A "very famous trainer of heavyweights" based in London is working with Jake (81:14).
    • Speculation: It could be Ben Davison (unlikely given his ties to AJ) or Don Charles, who trained Daniel Dubois to a recent major victory over Joshua.
      • “If this is true, it makes things very interesting. Don Charles was in a pretty much chaotic camp...but he is a very good trainer and a guy that just worked on a game plan to beat Anthony Joshua.” (81:28)
  • Skepticism remains: Even with expert training, Jake is vastly undersized and under-experienced. His only chance is something unpredictable or catching AJ off-guard.

Notable Quotes & Memorable Moments

• KSI on Jake facing AJ:

  “Jake is fighting AJ. And you know what? I'm going to give him props.” (05:14)

• Ring Magazine Host on Jake's risk:

  “There really is only one outcome that can hurt Jake in this scenario, and that's that he gets viciously knocked out or he gets beat up really bad for eight rounds and then viciously knocked out...People are kind of acting like that, like, oh, yeah, Jake, you should get knocked out. Who cares? You get in a bag. Yeah, but there's still going to be some residual massive trauma, hematoma potential from a guy like AJ knocking you out flat.” (06:03)

• Host (on Khabib’s scams):

  “At a certain point, are you not just a scammer as well?...You have to bear some responsibility as someone that is looked up to and has carried themselves as the moral fighter, as the guy that makes the right decisions…” (49:07)

• On Jake’s training:

  “This picture is insane. Number one, you do have legitimate heavyweights there...When you look at this picture, the first thing that jumps off the page is that Jake looks like a youngster that hasn't quite fully grown into heavyweight, when in reality he, this is as big as he's going to get.” (75:01)

• Host on secret trainer rumor:

  “A famous heavyweight boxing trainer based in London is working with Jake to prepare for Anthony Joshua...first person I thought of...Ben Davidson...or Don Charles, who just so happened...to as of earlier this year, absolutely chin and stop AJ…” (81:19)

Important Segment Timestamps

| Segment | Timestamp | |-------------------------------------------|---------------| | KSI praises Jake Paul | 05:14 | | Marketability and risk of AJ fight | 06:03–11:00 | | Purse split: Jake vs. AJ | 13:52–13:58 | | Tyron Woodley weighs in/“1% chance” | 15:10–15:56 | | Canelo vs. Crawford Rematch analysis | 15:56–26:51 | | Khabib NFT/Crypto scam discussion | 26:51–64:55 | | Jake Paul’s secret weapon and sparring | 69:03–86:10 | | Rumor of heavyweight trainer involvement | 81:14–81:28 |

Summary Takeaways

• The host commends Jake Paul’s audacity and recognizes the business intelligence—big risks, big rewards.
• AJ remains a gigantic favorite among panelists and boxing observers, but Jake’s relentless marketing, training, and outside-the-box strategies keep the story compelling (and controversial).
• Khabib’s business ventures have crossed the line from naive athlete shilling to repeat scam-like behavior, and the host argues the MMA community should hold him accountable.
• The Canelo vs. Crawford rematch is viewed as a cash grab likely to reinforce the one-sidedness of the first bout—the host predicts Crawford would dominate even more.
• The show ends with open questions: might Jake shock the world, or will all this prep simply delay the inevitable?

Closing Words

No matter how unlikely the upsets or how dubious the business, the spectacle of modern combat sports thrives on spectacle, controversy, and risk. The host’s thorough, sometimes blunt—but fair—commentary leaves listeners with plenty to debate about who’s a hero, who’s a villain, and how money, legacy, and pride intertwine in the fight game.