Mike Tyson retired from professional boxing in 2005 and will have kept true to his word, other than an exhibition with Roy Jones Jr, until this weekend.
He returns to face polarising figure Jake Paul, who has brought his impressive following from the content creation realm to the sport. The 27-year-old has fought 11 times, winning all but one when he faced novice pro Tommy Fury.
Paul enters the ring against Tyson the betting favourite due to the massive gap in age and activity. Tyson’s last action was a well-executed exhibition with Jones in 2020.
Speaking to TalkSPORT, Jones – who has named ‘Iron’ Mike the hardest hitter he’s been in with – highlighted his impressive defence as something he didn’t expect.
“I’m gonna say it like this. I hate to say it, but I thought I had some of the fastest hands ever. When I fought him four years ago I still could hardly hit him.
I was shocked at how good his defence is, how well he protected himself and kept himself out of harm’s way. I think I landed one really good hook that I wanted to land, but it was really difficult to land anything else on him.
And, along with that, you also have to gamble when you land shots on him. If you gamble with Mike Tyson, if he lands too you’re not gonna win that gamble. He’s 58, [when I fought him] he was 54, he was just as strong as ever and he was still very elusive.”
If ‘Captain Hook’ can’t land a shot, how will Jake Paul? Well, it’s because both Tyson and Jones are far, far away from their prime fighting conditions. Unlike the 2020 exhibition, this weekend’s contest will be sanctioned, albeit with soft rules including bigger gloves and shorter rounds.
Only time will tell how the former undisputed heavyweight champion fares on his return, however there’s a general feeling of fear that he – alongside Paul and the promotion – is asking too much of himself.
