Deontay Wilder afraid Mike Tyson will be ‘hit into a coma’ in Jake Paul fight on July 20: ‘I don’t want to see it’
Deontay Wilder does not want to see Mike Tyson step inside the ring with Jake Paul.
The former WBC heavyweight world champion recently raised some concerns about the upcoming boxing match between YouTube sensation Jake Paul and the legendary pugilist, ‘Iron’ Mike Tyson. The bout is scheduled to go down on Saturday, July 20, emanating from the 80,000-seat AT&T Stadium in Arlington, Texas.
Upon announcement, the bout was expected to be an exhibition match between the two generational talents. However, the Texas Department of Licensing and Regulation agreed to sanction the bout as a professional fight — the first of Mike Tyson’s career in nearly 20 years.
“I think it’s bad the commission has licensed Mike Tyson because he hasn’t been active in 20 years, so they should not just license him because of who he is, that’s how people get hurt, god forbid he gets hurt,” Wilder said in an interview with Sportsbook Review. “People can get hit in the wrong place and at the wrong time, there’s lots of examples where guys have been hit into a coma. It’s easy to do. He’s too old for this” (h/t DailyMail).
Deontay Wilder Insists No One Cares about Mike Tyson’s well-Being
The significant age difference between Tyson and Paul has been a growing concern among pundits. By the time the two step inside the ring this summer, the former unified heavyweight titleholder will be 58 years old, more than 30 years older than the 27-year-old ‘Problem Child.’
“At the end of the day, no one gives a f*ck about Mike,” Wilder continued. “We can talk about the pros and cons, but at the end of the day, they don’t give a f*ck. I don’t think anyone cares about Mike because if they did they wouldn’t sanction the fight. They may say they’ve done tests and all that, ok, but as long as you’re willing to suffer the consequences if something bad goes wrong.
“His power may not have left completely but you still need to set it up, your stamina needs to be a certain way, or it’s going to look like a clown show. I don’t want to see it to be honest.”
Jake Paul will be competing for the 11th time in his career, going 9-1 thus far with his lone loss coming against Tyson Fury’s younger brother, Tommy Fury. Paul is coming off back-to-back first-round knockouts against a couple of no-name opponents, Andre August and Ryan Bourland.
Meanwhile, Tyson has been retired since 2005, closing out his career with a 50-6 record and 44 of his wins coming by way of knockout. ‘Iron’ did return to the ring in 2020 for an exhibition bout with Roy Jones Jr.
“I don’t want the last thing I remember of him is him getting knocked out by a YouTuber,” Wilder added. “The last thing you do, that’s what people remember you by.”
