Jake Paul wants to clarify that it’s Mike Tyson who wanted to elevate the stakes in their fight, not him.
Paul’s eight-round boxing match vs. Tyson on July 20 will be officially sanctioned as a professional fight by the Texas Department of Licensing and Regulations. The event takes place at AT&T Stadium in Arlington, Texas, home of the Dallas Cowboys, and streams live on Netflix.
Paul (9-1) admits he worries about the public’s reaction if he knocks out Tyson (50-6), who will be 31 years his senior when they fight. While the likes of Daniel Cormier think he’s in a lose-lose situation facing Tyson, Paul looks at things differently.
“I think it’s a win-win,” Paul said on his BS w/ Jake Paul podcast. “They could hate me, they could love me. If I put my happiness to be dependent on an audience, then it’s a co-dependent relationship and co-dependent relationships aren’t good. If I’m relying on an audience to like me for my satisfaction then I will never be happy unless they like me, so that means I’ll do things to make them like me.”
Because of the vast age difference, many expected their boxing match to be an exhibition. However, Paul says that’s not what Tyson wanted.
“They’re just going to say he’s old and you disrespected him and all that sh*t, but I just want to make it clear, Mike Tyson was the one who wanted it to be a pro fight,” Paul said. “Mike got into training camp and called up people on my team and were like, ‘Let’s do a pro fight. Is Jake down?’ Netflix was like, ‘Let’s make it a pro fight. We’re down,’ And I said to Nakisa (Bidarian), ‘If that’s what Mike wants, then that’s fine, but make sure you tell Mike that there’s no holding back.’
“Whatever happens, happens, and this is war now. If Mike’s OK with that, then I’m OK with that. But I want Mike to be the one making this decision because I respect him as the legend. If he puts me down, I can deal with that. But if I put him down, he needs to be the one making the decision on whether or not he can deal with that. But yes, I’m going in there and now it’s a pro fight, it’s on my record, and I’m going to f*cking put him down. And if people are pissed about it, then watch soccer.”
For more on the fight, visit MMA Junkie’s hub for Paul vs. Tyson.
