There was an element of hope present in the hearts of fans as they tuned in to Mike Tyson‘s return to the squared circle for his first professional boxing fight in 19 years. Tyson managed to overcome a health scare earlier this year, and it was all systems go for his fight against Jake Paul. Given how dazzling of a boxer Tyson was during his heyday, there were some expectations, as muted as they might have been, that he could manage to turn back the clock and give Paul a scare — or perhaps even outright win the bout.
This, however, proved to be nothing but wishful thinking. After Tyson landed significant strikes in the first two rounds of the bout, the 58-year-old boxing legend showed his age. He did not have the requisite pep in his step to hang with someone 31 years younger than him, and in the end, it looked as though Paul was simply showing him mercy by not punching him down to the ground.
Overall, the boxing match went as well as a fight between a 58-year-old and a 27-year-old could go. Fans thought it was a boring match, and the only major victory that fans could come up with in the aftermath of the event was that Tyson survived the entire eight rounds.
“I stayed awake for nothing. Such a boring bout and of course respect to Paul & Tyson for pulling out the biggest con in US boxing history. 👿 #Netflix failed horribly a multi- billion dollar company doesn’t even know how to plan a biggest live stream event. #TysonPaul,” @iambharathram wrote on X, formerly known as Twitter.
“congratulations to jake paul and mike tyson for earning their paycheck and giving us the most boring fight of all time… mike should never have stepped in the ring,” @PrinceAsh98 added.
“Paul Tyson is like Mayweather Pacquiao. A lot of hype and really f**king boring,” @5starboppalini furthered.
“Still not impressed with Jake Paul. Tyson offering nothing. Paul, no urgency, kind of gassed. Canelo would sleep this man. Early and easily,” @McCormick_13 expressed.
Jake Paul boxed circles around Mike Tyson… but can he do it against a legitimate opponent?
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Witnessing Mike Tyson step into the ring while being a shell of his former self was brutal for fans. Tyson only managed to land 18 punches in eight rounds; meanwhile, Jake Paul landed 78 and conceivably could have landed more if he set out to knock out Iron Mike.
Paul, who will be turning 28 years of age in January 2025, should have a long boxing career ahead of him. Alas, boxing fans are imploring him to fight opponents who will pose much more of a threat. It seems like Paul will be headed towards that direction, as he called out Canelo Alvarez after his unanimous decision victory over Tyson.
Alvarez, of course, is one of the best boxers in the world. However, he will have to move up a few weight classes (from super middleweight) to meet Paul in the heavyweight division. If this fight ends up materializing, Paul should be the heavy underdog to say the least.