Mike Tyson wasn’t very talkative during the final news conference before his fight with YouTuber-turned-boxer Jake Paul, set for Friday night. Tyson, at 58 years old, had short responses to all the questions, just two days before the fight against Paul, who is 31 years younger, and will take place at the home stadium of the NFL’s Dallas Cowboys.
The topic of Tyson’s health didn’t come up during the brief event, held at a small concert venue about 20 miles from AT&T Stadium. The fight, originally planned for July 20, was postponed to Friday because Tyson had to get treatment for a stomach ulcer after he got sick during a flight.
Tyson mentioned in a documentary promoting the fight that he lost 26 pounds while recovering, but Nakisa Bidarian, co-founder of Most Valuable Promotions with Paul, said Tyson had been medically cleared for weeks before the fight.
Bidarian also added that Tyson had undergone the same medical exams required for any official professional fight in Texas.
Some states wouldn’t approve the fight, but Texas agreed to let it happen with special conditions. The fight will be only eight rounds, instead of 10 or 12, and the rounds will last two minutes instead of three. They also chose heavier gloves to reduce the impact of punches.
When reporters asked Tyson more questions, he responded, “I’ve said everything I had to say. I’m just looking forward to fighting.” Jake Paul, who seemed to enjoy the quiet Tyson, responded, “It’s cute. I fear no man, so I want him to be that old savage Mike.”
Paul even tried to provoke Tyson by wearing a “diamond-spiked ear cover,” a reference to the infamous moment when Tyson bit Evander Holyfield’s ear during their 1997 fight. However, Tyson didn’t respond.
Tyson did get a bit defensive when someone asked twice what he would do if he lost the fight. His last official fight was in 2005, and he fought Roy Jones Jr. in an exhibition match four years ago.
“I am not going to lose,” Tyson said, his voice rising the second time the question was asked. “Did you hear what I said?”
Tyson had a career record of 50 wins, 6 losses, and 44 knockouts before retiring 19 years ago. Jake Paul, with a record of 10 wins, 1 loss, and 7 knockouts, has spent less than five years as a pro, fighting mostly mixed martial artists and less experienced boxers.
This fight will be the first combat sports event streamed on Netflix. It will be available for free to Netflix’s 280 million global subscribers.
Paul is the betting favorite at minus-200, meaning if he wins, people who bet on him would win half the amount of their bet.
The co-main event will be a rematch between Katie Taylor and Amanda Serrano for the undisputed super welterweight title. Taylor won a close split decision in 2022 in a highly anticipated fight at Madison Square Garden, which was the first time a women’s fight headlined the venue.
Taylor and Serrano were seated behind Tyson and Paul on stage, with the 10 fighters from the undercard positioned on either side of the two main event fighters.
