Mike Tyson has shed more light on the leadup to his highly-anticipated fight against Jake Paul, as well as his experience inside the ring at AT&T Stadium on fight night
Mike Tyson has pulled the curtain on his divisive fight against Jake Paul.
Last month, Paul – or perhaps Father Time – decisively bested Tyson in front of a crowd of 70,000 at AT&T Stadium. Despite both combatants vowing that the highly-anticipated faceoff wouldn’t go the distance, the bout ended up spanning all eight, two-minute rounds – with all three judges ruling in favor of the YouTuber-turned-boxer.
After spending the better part of two decades away from the boxing ring, Tyson looked to be a shell of his former self upon returning to the stage where he dominated for so many years. The 58-year-old looked every bit his age versus Paul, 27, only managing to connect on 18 of his 97 punches thrown (18 percent).
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In the leadup to the lucrative fight – which became the most streamed global sporting event in history after Netflix raked in 108 million viewers – many fans expressed concern for Tyson’s health. The ‘Baddest Man on the Planet’ did little to ease these concerns following the bout, conceding that he suffered a major health scare prior and blacked out on fight night.
Below, Mirror U.S. Sports shares everything that Tyson has publicly said since duking it out with Paul.
Blanking out
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While appearing on Fox Sports Radio last week, Tyson admitted that he can’t recall what happened inside the ring for much of the eight-round bout, which he made sure to confirm was a “real fight.”
“I don’t remember the fight that much, I kind of blanked out. I haven’t watched the fight back,” he conceded. “You know what I remember… coming back from the first round and Jake was doing some sort of bow… that’s the last thing I remember.
“I wasn’t tired, I wasn’t sweaty,” Tyson noted. “I went to the house we were staying in, I left the house with my wife and kids, went to the after-party then went back.”
Second thoughts
On the heels of the watershed bout – which netted him around $20 million – Tyson questioned why he decided to take on Paul in the first place. “The day after the fight, I woke up and told my wife, ‘Why did I do that?’ I just don’t know what the hell went on.”
Tyson still relished the opportunity to fight following a long hiatus from the sport, adding: “This is one of those situations when you lost but still won … I’m grateful for [Friday] night and have no regrets about getting in the ring one last time.”
Health scare
Several months before the fight, Tyson revealed that he nearly lost his life after a medical health emergency required multiple blood transfusions. “I almost died in June,” he began. “I had eight blood transfusions. I lost half my blood and 25lbs in hospital and had to fight to get healthy to fight so I won.
“To have my children see me stand toe to toe and finish eight rounds with a talented fighter half my age in front of a packed Dallas Cowboy stadium is an experience that no man has the right to ask for.”
Over in an instant
Speaking to 7News at a Miami pop-up event, Tyson asserted that he wasn’t tired after going toe-to-toe with Paul despite his old age. “It just happened so quick,” he said. “Eight rounds were over fast. I wasn’t tired. I wasn’t sweating. I didn’t understand that.”
Sky is the limit
As for what the future may hold, Tyson stopped short of ruling out yet another fight. “As I said before, the sky is the limit,” he said. “Anything I want, I’m just happy to be able to do it. I’m very grateful to have the opportunity to be able to do everything that I want to do in this and beyond.”Mike Tyson has pulled the curtain on his divisive fight against Jake Paul.
