YouTuber Logan Paul called out KSI for his 'disgusting' remarks about women, and it's a sign their pre-fight trash talk is going too far
- YouTuber Logan Paul shot back against his future boxing opponent, British vlogger KSI, in a video calling out his derogatory remarks about women.
- Paul took issue with KSI's insults against his girlfriend, actress Chloe Bennett, and said his behaviour had been immature.
- The two are drumming up publicity ahead of a boxing match in Manchester Arena, which will be livestreamed for $8 (£6).
- Some of the trash-talking has become ill-natured, and the BBC decided not to air a key interview with the two YouTubers in a sign that they may have gone too far.
The upcoming boxing match between British YouTuber KSI and Logan Paul is becoming a phenomenon - for all the wrong reasons.
In the latest twist in the drama, Paul hit out at his opponent for making offensive remarks about his girlfriend, "Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D" actress Chloe Bennett, in a press conference ahead of the match on August 25.
During the press conference earlier this month, KSI suggested he would make a better lover than Paul, who is missing part of his testicle due to a stunt gone wrong. That was to background chants of "She's a hoe!" from the crowd.
In a video titled "DEAR KSI, HERE'S WHY I WALKED OFF STAGE...", Paul pointed to KSI's problematic history of making insulting and sexist remarks. He specifically referenced his ban in 2012 from Eurogamer events after he made lewd remarks to women.
"You talk about my girl like she's a piece of meat, but you know women have a choice right," Paul said. "Sometimes they don't like those comments, and I feel like you should have learned from what happened six years ago. You know what I'm talking about right? When you lost everything because you were disgusting towards women?"
Paul revealed that he had warned KSI off talking about Bennett ahead of the press conference, and that he had contractually agreed not to mention KSI's past. He also pointed to an earlier video where KSI suggested Logan Paul would be unable to kiss Chloe Bennett after receiving a cut lip - and that he would have to "f**k her like a prostitute."
"Before the London press conference, in... what was a mature attempt to handle this professionally, I had my team send your team a message that I know for a fact was personally received by you," Paul said.
You can read Paul's purported message to KSI below:
KSI made his own video in response to Paul, claiming he was "blowing this way out of proportion" and that he "didn't make any derogatory comments towards Chloe."
"I was simply making a joke about your lack of testicle," he added.
Has the pantomime trash talk turned too nasty?
The world of YouTube creators is full of confected drama, partly because it's a medium with zero regulation, and because YouTubers need to do increasingly outrageous things to stand out - like fight real-life boxing matches.
It's possible Logan Paul is emoting outrage in his latest video. This is, after all, the American vlogger who rose to fame posting juvenile "prank" videos and who reached peak notoriety in January for filming a dead body in Japan's "suicide forest." It was a crass decision which cost him ad revenue and a YouTube deal.
When London-based KSI issued a challenge to fight to Paul, it was perhaps partly with the idea that nothing would be so satisfying as watching this fratty vlogger take a right-hook to the face.
And yet KSI's sexist barbs, a supportive crowd chanting "She's a hoe", and a battle cry of "F**k the Pauls" seems disproportionate in the effort to build up momentum for their fight on August 25th.
Another sign that the goading has gone too far: BBC Radio 1, which is targeted at 15- to 29-year-olds, decided not to air an interview with Logan Paul and KSI after a backlash from listeners. It was one of the few media interviews the pair were scheduled to carry out ahead of their fight, a spokesman for KSI told Business Insider earlier this month.