By Joiner Martínez
May 2, 2024, 7:45 PM EDT
The fight between YouTuber Jake Paul and Mike Tyson at the AT&T Stadium in Arlington was endorsed by the Texas Boxing Commission as an official fight.
“I just want to make it clear that Mike Tyson was the one who wanted it to be a professional fight. I told Nikita that if that’s what Mike wanted, it was fine,” Paul said, in a video that went viral on social networks.
And he explained about how he continued his dialogue with Ababiy: “But make sure you tell Mike not to hold back. Whatever. What has to happen will happen. And this is war. Now, if he knocks me out, I’ll be able to deal with it; but if I take him down, he will have to be the one to make the decision of whether or not he can deal with it. I’m going into the ring knowing it’s going to be a professional fight. It’ll be on my record and I’m going to put an end to it. And if people are bothered by that, then go watch football.”
With the showdown scheduled for July 20 at AT&T Stadium in Texas, social media has become the scene of an intense rivalry between Tyson and Paul.
While Tyson warns in his posts: “I’m coming for you,” Paul responded with videos training to the limit, emulating iconic boxing movie scenes and a threat: “I’m going to rip off your ear Mikey.”
Tyson’s professional career ended in 2005 after three losses in his last four fights, including against Kevin McBride in his last outing.
The heavyweight icon has fought just once since then in an exhibition against Roy Jones Jr in 2020, a more balanced matchup than his next exploit.
Keep reading:
Texas Boxing Commission approves fight between Mike Tyson and Jake Paul to be professional
“Six weeks without drugs and without sex”: Mike Tyson confessed his plan to fight Jake Paul
Jake Paul praises Mike Tyson and also sends him a strong message: “I love you, but I have to finish you”