On Jul. 20, former Youtuber, Jake Paul, will go against the famous heavyweight boxer Mike Tyson in a boxing match that will be streamable on Netflix. Jake Paul began boxing professionally in 2020 and has 10 fights under his belt with 9 wins according to ESPN. On the other hand, ESPN also notes that Mike Tyson began boxing in 1985 and fought 58 matches before his retirement in 2005, winning 50 of his matches. Tyson became the youngest World Heavyweight Champion in 1986 until he was defeated in 1990 and lost his title.
At this point leading up to the fight, there are only speculations on what the rules and regulations will be. Given that Tyson and Paul each have an advantage over the other, there is a lot of debate on who will win and how each fighter will be protected from severe injury. Since Mike Tyson is a 57-year-old man and I, like many people on the internet, have concerns about his ability to fight against Jake Paul who is only 27 years old. Tyson’s last fight was in 2005 so it has been over a decade since he has even been in the ring. Due to his age, I believe he may not be able to execute the same moves that he was doing in his prime, including the Peekaboo technique, which consists of quick footwork. With that being said, Jake Paul has voiced that his main goal is to become a more serious boxer, and to do that he wants to challenge experienced fighters. Because of this goal, I believe that it is important to note that most of the matches he has fought have been against boxers who are at least 10 years older than him, for example, 38-year-old Nate Diaz and 48-year-old Anderson Silva. The only boxer that Paul has lost to so far in his professional career is Tommy Fury, who is 24 years old. However, I do feel like it is worth noting that even though Paul has been fighting against less-skilled boxers he has still made growth in his boxing career since his influencer match in 2018 against Deji, another Youtuber.
Despite the age difference, Tyson’s social media presence has shown that he “still hasn’t lost his spark,” according to Nyree Irving, a local sports fanatic. In his videos, Tyson shows off his boxing skills like his quick reflexes and even quicker punches. He even issues taunts to Jake Paul in his videos asking things like “Jake Paul, Where you at?” and “You still wanna f*ck with me?” Since Tyson’s boxing skills still reflect that of his time before retirement, I personally do not believe that Jake Paul is ready to take on a fighter of that caliber despite his youth advantage. Paul has made a habit of challenging boxers who are older than him and I do not believe that he is truly prepared to take on a boxing legend like Tyson. Paul’s social media presence, on the other hand, has not suggested much preparation for the event at all. He has posted a few training videos but the majority of his content implies that he isn’t taking any of it as seriously as his opponent.
In his upcoming match against Jake Paul, I hope that Mike Tyson wins not only to defy the criticisms of how his age may affect his skills but to also put Jake Paul in his place. I feel like Paul has taken on a cocky attitude for someone who is new to their sport. Despite his 9-1 record, most of his wins were against boxers who were aged out of their prime, and when put up against someone closer to his age Paul lost. I also think that losing to Mike Tyson would be a humbling experience in Paul’s boxing career and also build the level of champion-worthy skill that Jake Paul is hoping to achieve in the future.
By: Elaina Irving, Staff Writer