Mike Tyson’s controversial return to boxing ended in a one-sided defeat on Friday, with Youtuber-turned-prizefighter Jake Paul cruising to victory by unanimous decision against the heavyweight icon in Texas.
Tyson barely landed a punch during the eight-round bout at the AT&T Stadium in Arlington, with Paul winning by big margins on all three cards — 80-72, 79-73 and 79-73.
Paul used his superior speed and movement to dominate the ageing Tyson with ease, and had the former undisputed heavyweight champion in trouble after landing a flurry of punches in the third round.
Yet the younger fighter was unable to land the knockout blow he had promised to deliver during Thursday’s ill-tempered weigh-in, where Tyson slapped him across the face.
Tyson, however, looked every bit of his 58 years, managing to land only a handful of meaningful punches during the fight.
Final statistics showed Tyson connected with just 18 of 97 punches thrown while Paul threw some 278 punches and landed 78 of them.
As the final seconds of the eighth round counted down, Paul could even afford to bow in respect to Tyson before the bell sounded.
READ ALSO: Mike Tyson experiences health crisis during flight to Los Angeles
Final statistics showed Tyson connected with just 18 of 97 punches thrown while Paul threw some 278 punches and landed 78 of them.
As the final seconds of the eighth round counted down, Paul could even afford to bow in respect to Tyson before the bell sounded.
“First and foremost, Mike Tyson, it’s such an honor. Let’s give it up for Mike,” Paul said after embracing Tyson following his win.
“He’s the greatest to ever do it. He’s the GOAT, he’s a legend. I’m inspired by him and we wouldn’t be here today without him.
“This man is an icon and it’s just an honor to be able to fight him. He’s obviously the toughest, baddest man on the planet; it was really tough like I expected it to be.”
– ‘I came to fight’ –
Tyson, meanwhile, said he was satisfied with his performance despite the one-sided nature of the defeat.
“I came to fight,” he said. “I didn’t prove nothing to anybody, only to myself… I’m just happy with what I can do.”
Tyson had fought with a brace on his right knee but said it had not impacted his performance.
“I can’t use that as an excuse. If I did I wouldn’t be in here,” he said.
Tyson, meanwhile, praised the quality of his opponent Paul, who has successfully parlayed a career as a popular Youtuber and content creator into a string of lucrative boxing contests such as Friday’s event, bankrolled and broadcast by streaming giant Netflix.
“He’s a very good fighter,” said Tyson, who refused to rule out the possibility that he might even fight again.
AFP.com
