With his upcoming fight against Mike Tyson grabbing headlines, an old footage of Jake Paul saying why he would not fight the boxing legend resurfaced.
On Thursday morning, a bout between Paul, 27, and 57-year-old Tyson was announced for July 20 at AT&T Stadium in Texas. The fight will stream live on Netflix as the service’s first boxing event.
After the announcement, TMZ posted the old footage from 2020 when Paul was two fights into his boxing career. The influencer-turned-boxer was asked about potentially fighting Tyson or Evander Holyfield in an exhibition but swiftly turned down the idea.
‘Look, I’m confident, but I’m not stupid,’ Paul told TMZ then. ‘I would not go into the ring with them. Nah, no chance.’
Four years later, Paul will meet Iron Mike inside the squared circle.
Jake Paul said he ‘would not go into the ring’ with Mike Tyson in a 2020 interview with TMZ
On Thursday, Paul’s fight against Tyson was announced for July 20 at AT&T Stadium in Texas
Tyson will step into the ring for the first time since 2021 against Paul who is 30 years younger
The Problem Child now holds a 9-1 boxing record and is coming off three straight wins, the last two being finishes. Paul will head into the fight fresh from a first-round knockout over Ryan Bourland on March 2.
On the other hand, the much older Tyson held a 50-6 professional record with 44 knockouts before retiring in 2005. Iron Mike returned to the ring in 2020 for an exhibition against Roy Jones Jr., during which Paul knocked former NBA star Nate Robinson in the co-main event.
With their showdown cemented, Tyson has become the biggest name in Paul’s list of high-profile opponents. Paul has been known for bringing athletes out of retirement to face them in the boxing ring, which has been the knock on him for most of his career.
Paul has faced the likes of Robinson, Ben Askren, Tyron Woodley, Anderson Silva, and Nate Diaz- scoring wins against each one. His lone defeat came against Tommy Fury in 2023.