There’s So Much Backlash to the ‘Garbage’ Mike Tyson & Jake Paul Fight

Most Valuable Promotions. Jake Paul and Mike Tyson.

There’s already a lot of backlash to the upcoming boxing event between the former heavyweight champ Mike Tyson and YouTube creator Jake Paul.

The two will be in a ring with one another on July 20, headlining a show Netflix will stream live.

Heavy asked an event organizer on March 7 whether the match is an official one or if it is an exhibition, however, we never received a reply.

Whatever it is labeled as, there are numerous people in the combat sports industry who are unimpressed.

“You can’t lose to a 60-year-old man and you also can’t beat a 60-year-old man,” the former UFC fighter Matt Brown told The Fighter vs. The Writer podcast on MMA Fighting.

Brown added that “it’s a lose-lose” situation if you’re Paul, who has built a notable pro boxing record of 9 wins (6 KOs) against one loss.

He’s also surprised Tyson even agreed to the bout. “I don’t know what Mike is thinking here,” said Brown.

“What makes him want to do it. I don’t think he’s hurting for money. I don’t think he has a huge urge to fight. He talks about it all the time. He doesn’t want to be that guy no more. It’s very odd that he’s taking the fight. That’s the odd part to me.”

Finishing, Brown said: “What I hope for … is that Mike Tyson has that young, 20-year-old rage, gets on some [expletive] steroids, does some trim, some cheque drops, and he goes in there and bites [expletive] Jake Paul’s ear, and knocks him the [expletive] out and Jake Paul never wants to box an old man again.”

UFC Boss Dana White Is Unamused

Speaking to reporters after the conclusion of UFC 299 in Miami, UFC boss Dana White also sounded like he couldn’t think of many things worse than seeing his friend, Tyson, share a ring with someone 30 years younger than him in Paul, 27.

“He gets mad when I do this, but Mike’s 60, man,” said White. “I don’t know, what do you guys think about it? Who gives a [expletive] what I think? It’s not my fight.”

White continued: “I love Mike Tyson personally as a friend, and he’s one of my favorite athletes of all time.

“Let’s see what he can go in there and put together a training camp and come in. I don’t like to see guys fighting at [that age] … you guys know what I think of that stuff.”

‘It Absolutely Sucks,’ Ex-UFC Champ Dan Cormier Says

Though Tyson participated in an exhibition bout involving Roy Jones Jr. in 2020, he hasn’t fought in a legitimate boxing contest since 2005 when Kevin McBride — a fighter he would have swatted aside in his prime — retired him in the sixth round.

For UFC commentator and former two-weight UFC champion Dan Cormier, “it absolutely sucks” to see Tyson return in this way.

On The Good Guy & Bad Guy podcast, Cormier said: “Mike is a different person now.”

He added: “I saw Mike walk into the UFC last year with a walking stick.  I don’t know how they pull this off.”