Mike Tyson will take on Jake Paul in a controversial eight-round professional bout on July 20 in Arlington, Texas. Tyson, once the most feared fighter in the world, is 57 and has not fought professionally since hanging up his gloves in 2005 following his TKO loss to Kevin McBride (his 2020 bout against Roy Jones Jr. being an exhibition) and suffers from many health issues, including shot knees.
This means he is three decades older than Paul, who is in his athletic prime and coming off three wins in the last year alone. This gulf has predicably earned almost universal scorn from the fight world as a mere money grab. But not for Chael Sonnen, who compared Mike Tyson to Conor McGregor in one particular aspect.
At UFC 303 on June 29, Conor Mcgregor will be back in the Octagon against Michael Chandler after three years, following a potentially career-ending injury. As such, many questions are being raised about whether he can even compete against the top guys anymore. One particular cause of concern is his historically poor gas tank, which is likely to have further declined over the past three years.
Fan favorite UFC analyst Chael Sonnen thinks these concerns about their ability to make it to the final bell are something McGregor and Mike Tyson have in common as they gear up to make their much-awaited comebacks. This, ‘Uncle Chael’ believes, will motivate both men to try to knock out their respective opponents quickly.
“Two-minute rounds is what Mike did when he took on Roy [Jones Jr.]. The same Mike was completely exhausted… A combat’s athlete’s biggest fear is exhaustion. So if you’re a guy like Mike Tyson, right? And it’s the same situation that Conor McGregor is going into with Michael Chandler: ‘I can’t go to a decision and win and I don’t give a damn about moral victories. I’m going to give you everything I got and I’m going to get you out of here, or I’m going to be done, I’m going to be shot,” he said on his YouTube channel.
Sonnen felt that since Tyson and Paul will fight for eight two-minute rounds, with a minute of rest in between, the fears of Tyson getting exhausted are not as severe as would have been, had they decided to go with the standard three-minute rounds. But, given Tyson’s advanced age and health problem, he felt ‘Iron Mike’s best bet was a knockout early, just like McGregor. But despite all the disadvantages, Sonnen is one of the few people in the combat sports world who has picked Tyson to beat Paul.
Chael Sonnen has maintained that Mike Tyson’s natural size advantage (‘Iron Mike’ is a heavyweight, while Paul has fought between middleweight and cruiserweight in his boxing career), as well as historically great skills and technique in the ring, would be too much for Paul to handle.
This is why the UFC analyst, who grew up in the mean streets of West Lynn, Oregon, is surprised that Paul was going into the bout as the betting favorite. “It makes for a very interesting match when DraftKings gives and nudges Jake Paul slight favorite over greatly experienced and oversized Mike Tyson,” Sonnen mentioned.
Despite their mismatch, at least on paper, Sonnen felt that the reputation-sullying stakes of the bout made it a “fascinating” affair. “Mike does not want to lose, Jake cannot lose. Mike’s reputation, everything is going to change. Jake’s career comes to a screeching halt… It’s very fascinating,” he added.
