It’s time for another timely edition of Tyson’s Thoughts.
What will I be pontificating about this week?
Well, you can consider me shocked, for starters. Social media star Jake Paul and “Iron” Mike Tyson have not only agreed to a boxing match on July 20, but the Texas athletic commission has even agreed to sanction it as an official fight that will go on both their records.
According to media reports, Paul vs. Tyson will be scheduled for eight two-minute rounds, and they will be wearing 14 ounce gloves instead of 10 ounce gloves that professional fighters usually wear.
What do I think about this breaking news? To be blunt, which I always am whenever I write down my thoughts for everyone to read, when I first heard about Paul and Tyson agreeing to a fight that will be aired live on Netflix, I automatically assumed it would be nothing more than a fun exhibition showcase, which I was totally fine with.
Tyson is a 57-year-old heavyweight who hasn’t fought professionally since 2005 when he quit before the start of the seventh round against journeyman Kevin McBride. On the other side of the equation, Jake Paul is a 27-year-old cruiserweight with a 9-1 record, with his lone defeat coming via points against Tommy Fury.
Now, while Tyson did have an exhibition bout in 2020 against Roy Jones Jr., as we all know, exhibitions don’t really matter too much in the grand scheme of things. They are generally just a way for a fighter to get a quick paycheque later on in life without having to risk taking any real damage.
With that said, I was still planning to watch the Paul vs. Tyson fight if it had just been scheduled as an exhibition. I have a huge passion for combat sports, I watch boxing and UFC every weekend, and I have a Netflix subscription so it wouldn’t be costing me more than what I already pay monthly for their content.
Now that we know it’s not an exhibition, do I think that the Texas athletic commission should have protected Tyson by not sanctioning it as a professional bout? My brain says absolutely, but on the other hand, we don’t really know what kind of fighting shape Tyson is in. He looked strong a few years ago against Jones Jr., and everyone says that power is the last thing to go in a fighter, so it’s definitely possible he could connect early and put Paul down for the count.
I guess to summarize my thoughts, I’m not entirely sure how I feel about Tyson having an officially sanctioned fight at 57-years-old. The warrior spirit that’s buried deep inside of my heart thinks it’s epic that he’s ready and willing to come out of retirement to fight an opponent who’s much younger than he is, but as I said previously, my brain does realize there’s some seriously inherent dangers involved, as prizefighting is definitely a young person’s sport.
On a personal level, I can relate to not being able to walk away from combat sports. I’m turning 40 in June and I still get on the mats and teach wrestling/grappling to Port Hardy high school kids, and while I often feel like I’ve been in a car wreck the next day after a tough class, I wouldn’t trade all the time I’ve spent teaching them for anything.
Yes, I’ll always have a passion for combat sports, and I know deep down that one day in the far off future, I’ll be that old man sitting on his porch telling stories about the good ol’ days when he used to go to war on the mats.
Tyson Whitney is an award-winning journalist who was born and raised in Port Hardy. His family has lived in Port Hardy for more than 40 years. He graduated with a degree in writing from Vancouver Island University in 2008. Email: editor@northislandgazette.com