(Reuters) – Mike Tyson, the one-time “Baddest Man on the Planet”, was throwing no punches on Wednesday in reply to criticism of his fight with YouTuber-turned boxer Jake Paul in Texas next month.
Now 58, the former heavyweight world champion will step into the ring in Arlington on Nov. 15 against a man 31 years his younger but with only 10 professional fights to his name.
British promoter Eddie Hearn this month dismissed the bout at the 80,000 seat AT&T Stadium as “dangerous, irresponsible and disrespectful to boxing” and said he would not be watching.
“I’m in awe of him. He’s one of my favourite ever fighters, one of the greatest of all time, but he’s a 58-year-old man,” Hearn told the BBC. “You only need to speak to him and look at him to know this guy should not be in a ring again.”
“Everybody loves a dollar bill, including me, but sometimes the green-eyed monster can make you take some bad decisions and I think this is one of them.”
Tyson, who in 1997 was stripped of his licence after infamously sinking his teeth into Evander Holyfield’s ear, refused to bite.
“Well, that’s Eddie’s opinion, and that’s all I can say,” he told reporters in a video call from Las Vegas.
As for the fight, he had no doubt who would win.
“I’m doing well. I’m just looking forward to the fight. Really looking forward to it. When you think about it, regardless of me being how old I am, this guy only has 10 fights,” Tyson said.
“If I see this fight 10% of what I was, he only has 10 fights. He couldn’t match that. And that’s being sincere. If I’m 10%, he can’t match it.”
‘A NICE PERSON I AM NOT’
Tyson, who made and spent many millions through his career and filed for bankruptcy in 2003, denied money was the motivation and said he was just doing it for himself.
“This money from this fight is not going to change my lifestyle any,” he said.
“You know, I could use a buck like everyone else, but this is not for financial reasons. My life is not going to change, not one percentage after this fight. We will always be able to live this way. And I’m just doing it because I want to test myself.”
Tyson, who was convicted of rape in 1992 while maintaining his innocence, said things had changed for the better in his life but that still did not make him a nice man.
“I try to do the right thing, but a nice person I am not. So, anybody who has that kind of auspices that I’m a nice person, they’re going to be disappointed. I’m just not,” he said.
“I’m not a nice person. I don’t make people happy out of, you know, for no reason. I’m just who I am. I’m not trying to gain friends, that’s basically what I’m saying.”
Tyson, who has a 50-6 record with 44 knockouts, was one of the most feared heavyweights in history but has not fought a professional fight since 2005. Paul has a 9-1 record.
(Writing by Alan Baldwin in London, Editing by Andrew Cawthorne)
