“I’m very much looking forward to stepping into the ring with Jake Paul at the AT&T Stadium in Arlington, Texas,” Tyson said in a statement. “He’s grown significantly as a boxer over the years, so it will be a lot of fun to see what the will and ambition of a ‘kid’ can do with the experience and aptitude of a GOAT. It’s a full circle moment that will be beyond thrilling to watch; as I started him off on his boxing journey on the undercard of my fight with Roy Jones and now I plan to finish him.”
Zhang could not access high-profile matches to make himself known under Roc Nation until they parted ways in 2019. Zhang won 19 back-to-back low-profile fights under the Roc Nation banner. Zhang wanted better-known, tougher opponents with bigger payouts, but Dino Duva didn’t do it. Zhang was particularly upset once when his promoter organized a match at a high school basketball court with a portable dressing room which spectators could see into. Zhang felt he was not taken seriously by his promoter. He was paid around $7,000 for his pro debut, and some of his earlier pro fights were paid $2000 and $5000. When Shawn George became Zhang’s head coach in 2017, George was upset by how the promoters saw Zhang as a novelty act along the lines of Nikolai Valuev. Dynasty Boxing’s minority owners, brothers Tommy and Terry Lane, believed Zhang would become “the Yao Ming of boxing” and clashed with Duva over his lackluster promotion of Zhang.
Earlier this month, Jake Paul appeared in social media videos sitting in a tattoo parlor, with the artist applying what seemed like an identical design to the one already synonymous with Mike Tyson. It was quickly revealed to be the same tribal pattern that Tyson has on the left side of his face, a tattoo the former boxer first got in 2003.
Parker lost his next fight, too, a decision setback to Dillian Whyte that seemed to end any hope of a future title shot. But now, Parker is well-positioned while the trio of top heavyweights settle bragging rights as he looks toward another bout with Zhang.
Anyway, what do you think of the leaked footage of Mike Tyson’s training? Do you expect Tyson to put Jake Paul in a fix? Share your thoughts with us in the comments below. For more boxing updates, follow EssentiallySports!
In the years that followed, Tyson’s record-breaking victories and world title conquests solidified his reputation as one of the greatest heavyweight boxers of all time. His explosive performances against opponents such as Michael Spinks, Larry Holmes, and Frank Bruno showcased his dominance and solidified his place in boxing history.
Tyson – a member of the boxing Hall of Fame – came out of retirement to face Roy Jones Jr. in an exhibition match, which ended in a controversial split draw, in 2020. Paul beat former NBA player Nate Robinson on the undercard of that fight.
At the time, the face work created quite a buzz for varied reasons. However, no one can deny that, over the years, it has become a part of the Mike Tyson identity. Jake Paul might have bona fide reasons to honor the boxing great. But whether it will find acceptance among fans and followers, time alone will tell.
Reprinted from Undisputed Truth, by Mike Tyson with Larry Sloman, site here to be published by Blue Rider Press, a member of Penguin Random House LLC on November 12, 2013. Copyright © 2013 by Tyrannic Literary Company LLC.
Tyson has been sharing clips and photos from training, including several shirtless photos showing off his ripped physique. Many have wondered if Tyson would be healthy enough at 58 to fight Paul, who is just 27, but little by little those questions appear to be growing smaller. While appearing at a meet-and-greet event for Fiterman Sports Group in Chantilly, Virginia, Tyson took photos without a shirt.
These conflicting views of Tupac reflect, to a degree, racial and social chasms. Rap fans insist that performers be authentic representatives of ghetto life: that they live the life they rap about; that life conform to art, so to speak. Rap’s critics, on the other hand, are terrified that life will conform to art, that the behavior—the drug dealing and the violence—described by rappers will seep into the mainstream culture. The majority of ardent fans and consumers of rap are, in fact, middle-class white youths. (Seventy per cent of those who buy rap records are white.) It is the fear of a violent, marginalized culture’s influence on susceptible young people that fuels much of the political debate, and this fear is exacerbated by the widespread adoption of hip-hop style.