Mike Tyson 'ready' for rescheduled Jake Paul fight after illness concerns - 'Who else can do it but me?'
By Oli Gent
Published 19/08/2024 at 14:01 GMT+1
Mike Tyson insists that he is fully "ready" for his rescheduled fight against YouTuber Jake Paul after he recovered from an ulcer issue that postponed the original bout. The pair were set to face off in an unlikely encounter in Arlington, Texas on July 20 before Tyson withdrew, but the fight has been rescheduled for November 15. Paul has fought BKFC fighter Mike Perry since then, stopping him.
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Video credit: TNT Sports
Mike Tyson says that he is "ready" for his fight against YouTuber Jake Paul, which is slated for November 15 in Arlington, Texas.
The 58-year-old is stepping out of retirement once again for a highly-anticipated bout where he faces Paul, who has turned his hand to professional boxing, where he holds a 10-1 record.
The encounter was previously scheduled for July 20, but Tyson was forced to withdraw due to a reported ulcer issue, which was first discovered when the veteran began to feel dizzy on a flight from Miami to Los Angeles.
As such, the bout was postponed, and Paul quickly moved to fight bare-knuckle fighter Mike Perry in Tampa, Florida, winning via sixth-round TKO.
Now, Paul's attentions turn back to Tyson, with the big-money bout back on the table, and Tyson, the former undisputed heavyweight champion, has insisted that he is ready to face an opponent 31 years his junior.
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"Hey, listen, I'm just ready," Tyson said at the pair's press conference in New York.
"I had a small adversity. I got sick, but I'm better. I feel good."
Tyson's professional record stands at 50-6, with 44 knockouts, and this will be the second exhibition bout since his 2005 retirement, after he fought Roy Jones Jr back in 2020 - a card where Jake Paul was on the undercard, fighting NBA player Nate Robinson.
Asked why he had chosen to take on Paul, Tyson replied, gesturing to the packed-out room teeming with fans and media personnel: "Because I can. Who else can do it but me? Who else is he going to fight to make this happen?
"We've just got to listen to the facts. We've got a YouTuber fighting the greatest fighter that ever lived."
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Video credit: TNT Sports
Paul believes that experience in the ring with "one of the greatest to ever do it" will help him with his future bouts down the road.
"Big moments, big pressure, big stages, one of the greatest to ever do it, more experience than me, more fights than me," the 27-year-old said.
"I'm going to learn a lot in this fight and through this training camp," Paul said. "So, this is helping me in my future fights and everything that I want to accomplish."
On the undercard of the event, there is a mouthwatering women's encounter, where Katie Taylor, the super lightweight champion, rematches Amanda Serrano in a repeat of their 2022 title fight, which Taylor won.
It was the first women's boxing match to headline at Madison Square Garden.
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