Wrexham hero James McClean is a man of many talents and one of those talents is boxing. He’s even put himself forward to fight Jake Paul one day in the future.
Jake Paul counts the likes of Mike Tyson and Nate Diaz among his previous opponents in the ring. But his next could well be an unlikely name in Wrexham player James McClean.
The 36-year-old Irishman is a hero among fans and a huge favourite of club co-owner Ryan Reynolds too, with Reynolds sharing his love for McClean in multiple interviews now.
And Reynolds is always quick to state how tough he thinks McClean is. It’s no secret that McClean is Wrexham’s hardman and he’s handy in the ring, often posting videos and pictures of him boxing.
Earlier this summer, McClean called out Paul for a boxing match. He insists he’d beat Paul with just one training camp needed, and Reynolds has now weighed in with his thoughts on a potential match up between the two.
Ryan Reynolds jokes about Phil Parkinson barrier in Jake Paul vs James McClean fight
Reynolds has appeared on the podcast Men in Blazers. He spoke about a number of topics with Reynolds discussing Rob McElhenney’s role behind the scenes at Wrexham among many other things. Another topic was the possibility of McClean fighting Paul.
Asked whether he could see the fight happening, Reynolds revealed how he thinks manager Phil Parkinson wouldn’t be too pleased with McClean stepping into the ring whilst he’s a Wrexham player, saying: “The problem is Phil, right. Phil would be like, ‘You want to send my player in to to get in a fight to fight this guy’.”
McClean is among the Wrexham players out of contract in 2026 though, so there’s scope for a potential fight between Paul and McClean at the end of the 2025/26 potentially, should McClean not be in the club’s plans for the 2026/27 season.
James McClean has only one thing on his mind right now, and that’s Wrexham
McClean could well pursue a career in boxing when his time playing football comes to an end. And Parkinson, Reynolds and everyone who knows him would back him to go on and succeed in the ring.
But right now, McClean is only focused on the 2025/26 season. He played a huge part in Wrexham’s promotion from League One last season and he’ll be determined to play a key role next season, knowing it could well be his last season at the club.
Speaking recently, McClean gave his verdict on the 2025/26 Championship season, saying: “I have no doubts at all that people will step up and perform even better. It was the same as last season. When the pressure is on and the backs are against the wall, we stand up time and time again.”
Once that’s out the way, McClean and Paul could yet get into some serious talks about a potential fight, and it’s one that would certainly get a whole lot of interest around the globe.