Jake Paul drew intense backlash after his latest fight with the 58-year-old boxing legend Mike Tyson due to the glaring age difference between the two and the latter’s protracted retirement from professional boxing since 2005.
The former YouTuber turned boxer addressed the criticism at a press conference at Texas Live! in Arlington, Texas.
After Tyson’s eight-round fight with the challenger half his age, Piers Morgan praised his passion and tenacity, claiming that a younger Tyson would have finished the fight in 90 seconds.
Echoing Morgan’s feelings, Paul wrote on X: “Who mocked him? He’s a beast. All respect to the Baddest Ever. It was an honor to share the ring with him.”
However, it seems that he has now mocked his critics by posting about a 392-year-old shark found in the Arctic Ocean. “Next opponent found. Let’s run it,” Paul quipped on X.
Reacting to his post, one of the X users wrote, “What is this?” with two laughing emojis.
“Imagine just floating around in freezing cold water for 392 years,” another commented.
“Ok, this is actually hilarious. +1 for Jake on this one,” a third user chimed in.
Tyson bout ‘was not compromised’ in any way, says Paul’s Most Valuable Promotions
Two year back, Paul also engaged in combat with Anderson Silva, a UFC fighter. At the time, Silva was 47 and Paul was 25.
Paul’s Most Valuable Promotions co-founder Nakisa Bidarian put an end to any rumors that the Tyson bout was tainted in any way.
“In terms of this fight specifically, I will say the following: It was sanctioned by the athletic commission. Our partner was Netflix, who is the biggest media company in America and is a public entity. There was professional sports betting on the event,” Bidarian stated.
Calling the fight “100% real”, he added, “It was so real that the guy had an ulcer, and we took a five-month break to give him time to heal the ulcer to be able to perform at his best level.”
Paul won the fight against Tyson with a unanimous decision. Paul later acknowledged that, he eased off in the latter rounds despite his initial desire for an exciting performance. “I wanted to give the fans a show, but I didn’t want to hurt someone that didn’t need to be hurt.” With a record of 11 victories and 1 loss, Paul is still focused on his future goals as he advances in his boxing career.
