Derek Brunson Tells Jake Paul He'll Be Waiting For Him After Debut PFL Championship Win

"The biggest takeaway from this fight was to get three rounds, and by the end, I wasn't really tired," Brunson said during his post-fight press conference. "This is the first time in my career where I was super motivated to run 10-15 miles per week every single week for the last eight weeks.

"Even though I didn't get the finish, I was still pleased I was able to go three full rounds. If I would have done that in my last two fights, I would have won them easily."

As far as what's next for Brunson, he's keeping all options open. Though his fight with Cooper was conducted at middleweight, the division has not been a part of the PFL's six championship weight divisions that contain a regular season and playoff format. Brunson, however, would consider staying at 185 if such a division were opened thanks to the PFL's acquisition of Bellator.

That said, Brunson does have YouTube star-turned-combat fighter Jake Paul on his mind. Brunson called out Paul in the immediate aftermath of his fight during the post-fight interview with Dan Hardy.

"Jake Paul, he called me out a couple of years ago, and now we're in the same promotion. So you never know," Brunson said. "He likes the older guys, so, right here for him."

Paul's next fight in the boxing ring is scheduled for Dec. 15.