Mike Tyson and Jake Paul worked out in front of fans and the media ahead of their controversial boxing fight in Dallas, Texas on Friday night
Mike Tyson admitted he questioned “what the f***” he was doing when he accepted a fight with Jake Paul.
Tyson will return to the ring at the age of 58 on Friday when he takes on YouTuber Paul in Texas. The former undisputed heavyweight world champion has not fought for four years since his exhibition with Roy Jones Jr, while his last professional fight saw him quit on his stool after five rounds against Kevin McBride in 2005.
Tyson also suffered an inflamed ulcer in the build-up to the fight, forcing him to postpone it from its original July date until this week. But he insists he is fighting fit and put on a show with his trainer during a workout on Tuesday.
Afterwards, when asked what he had learned during his preparations, Tyson said: “That I’m tougher than I believed I was, because when I agreed to this fight and started training, I thought: ‘What the f*** am I thinking of?’ But now I’ve finished the process, the fight is the party. Never in a million years did I think I would be fighting him.”
Paul, meanwhile, has won 10 of his 11 professional fights but has padded his record by taking on former MMA fighters including Ben Askren, Tyron Woodley, Anderson Silva and Nate Diaz. He will start as the favourite on Friday and has a 31-year age advantage over his legendary opponent.
“I’m just blessed to be here, so grateful to all the fans who showed up,” he said after his own workout. Dallas is going to be an amazing night on Friday. I’m just having fun doing my thing. I feel really good, sharp and explosive, and it’s going to be a short night for Mike. It’s not about how long you’ve been doing something, it’s about how good you do it. On Friday, people are going to see me out-box the person who’s been doing it their whole life.
“We are an unstoppable force and on Friday, my dreams come true and my career starts. This is the start of an amazing journey, it doesn’t matter what I’ve done before, my career starts now.”
Paul also addressed his mum who was watching on after admitting she is wary of Tyson’s power despite his advancing years. “She’s nervous,” he added. “She doesn’t like watching Mike Tyson throw punches because she’s a little bit scared. Mum, I promise you I was built for this, I was destined for this. The God’s have got me, the universe has got me and I, Jake Joseph Paul, will knock out Mike Tyson. It is written in the f***ing history books.”
