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14th May 2024
09:21am BST
Mike Tyson issued a stern warning to Jake Paul yesterday at a press conference in New York ahead of their July 20th bout.
Speaking at a conference ahead of the Netflix event, the two exchanged tense barbs to whet the appetite of audiences for what will be sure to be an interesting fight.
Tyson said of Paul: "He’s the up-and-coming guy on the scene, and I like to shake the world at its core." Jake gave as good as he got, saying: "Mike wanted this to be a pro fight. He wants the war, I respect him for taking this fight and stepping up to try and put an end to me because that’s what all these fighters have been trying to do – to end the YouTuber. If Mike can do that, then he’s a hero."
After Jake's throwing down of the gauntlet, Tyson responded with a cold warning to Paul: "I really like Jake, but once he’s in the ring, he has to fight like his life is dependent on it because it will be."
By the time the fight comes round, Tyson will have just turned 58 whilst Paul will be 27, making this the largest age gap between two fighters in professional boxing history.
Ever since the fight was announced in March, boxing fans have wondered what the rules will be, and whether the bout would be sanctioned as an exhibition or not.
Now, the Texas Department of Licensing and Regulations have confirmed that Tyson vs Paul will be a professional bout that will go on both men’s records.
“Mike Tyson and Jake Paul signed on to fight each other with the desire to do so in a sanctioned professional fight that would have a definitive outcome,” Paul’s Most Valuable Promotions business partner Nakisa Bidarian told ESPN. “Over the past six weeks, MVP has worked with its partners to satisfy the requirements of the Texas Department of Licensing and Regulations (TDLR) to sanction Paul vs. Tyson, and we are grateful that we have gotten to this point.”
The fight will be contested over eight, two-minute rounds with both Paul and Tyson wearing 14-ounce gloves in the ring and no headgear.
In a post on social media, Paul said it was his opponent’s wishes for the event to be sanctioned as a professional fight.
He wrote: “Mike Tyson wanted it to be a pro fight. Netflix wanted it to be a pro fight. So I agreed to make it a pro fight. Winner takes all.”
The bout will be Iron Mike’s first professional fight since 2005 and the first time he has stepped in the ring since he took on Roy Jones Jr in an exhibition in 2020.
Paul, meanwhile, last fought in February as he stopped Ryan Bourland in the first round, with his only loss coming to Tommy Fury.
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