ARLINGTON, Texas — Jake Paul respected the elder “elf” Friday night that he belittled and promised he would kill just 24 hours earlier.
Paul, 27, clearly wary of even a 58-year-old Mike Tyson’s power, mostly approached the former heavyweight champion with caution throughout their anticlimactic eight-round bout at a packed AT&T Stadium. Worse yet, an aged, inactive Tyson, infamous for biting Evander Holyfield’s in their rematch 27 years ago, spent more time nibbling on his gloves than throwing punches and barely let his hands go after the second round.
The scorecards reflected Tyson’s inability to muster much offense. Judge David Iacobucci (80-72) scored it a shutout for Paul, who won seven rounds apiece on the cards of judges Laurence Cole (79-73) and Jesse Reyes (79-73).
This unanimous decision defeat counts on Tyson’s record (50-7, 44 KOs, 2 NC) because it was an official fight. They fought only eight two-minute rounds and wore 14-ounce gloves to account for Tyson’s age and inactivity.
Tyson also admitted to Uncrowned’s Ariel Helwani during his post-fight interview that he entered the ring with some sort of injury to the lower part of his right leg. He wore a protective sleeve during the fight.
Tyson also stated that he may fight again despite Friday’s performance.
Paul, who admitted he was “scared” of his opponent’s power, applauded Tyson for helping him draw an enormous crowd to the Dallas Cowboys’ home stadium and a live audience on Netflix that Paul claimed reached 120 million.
“First and foremost, Mike Tyson, it’s such an honor,” Paul said. “Let’s give it up for Mike, bro. He’s a legend. He’s the greatest to ever do it. He’s the GOAT. He’s the greatest to ever do it. I’m inspired by him and we wouldn’t be here today without him. This man is an icon and it’s just an honor to be able to fight him. And he’s obviously the toughest, baddest man on the planet, so it was really tough, like I expected it to be.”
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Paul — 31 years younger than Tyson, but a true cruiserweight and comparatively inexperienced — was consistently listed as a 2-to-1 favorite over Tyson.
An exhausted Tyson said he wasn’t surprised Paul went the distance with him.
“I knew he was a good fighter,” Tyson said. “I knew he was prepared. I came to fight. … I didn’t prove nothing to anybody, only to myself. I’m not one of these guys that looks to please the world. I’m just happy with what I can do.”
Tyson amusingly added that he has “a biting fixation” as an explanation why he often put his mouth on his gloves during his fight with Paul.
His boxing timing unfortunately wasn’t as good as his comedic timing, which led the type of poor performance his age suggested it would.
Paul (11-1, 7 KOs) wasn’t exactly entertaining or effective, either, though he undoubtedly won a fifth straight fight since his split-decision defeat to British rival Tommy Fury.
“Man, I tried to hurt him a little bit, you know,” Paul said. “But I was scared he was going to hurt me. I’m trying to hurt him, but I did my best. I did my best.”
Tyson came out aggressive early and landed a right hand about 30 seconds into the opening round, a shot that prompted Paul to retreat. It was already clear by then that Paul was wary of Tyson’s vaunted power. But Tyson was warned for a low blow with about 15 seconds to go in the first round, and perhaps a more important warning was issued to the fans inside the stadium and those watching on Netflix worldwide, as Tyson looked tired after all of two minutes of action.
The crowd booed as Paul held Tyson tightly halfway through the second round that lacked action.
Paul let his hands go more in the third round, whereas Tyson barely threw any punches in those two minutes. Paul clipped Tyson with his left hook as Tysom came forward 15 seconds into the third round.
Tyson and Paul slipped each other’s punches for the most part in a futile fourth round for both boxers. Paul’s right to Tyson’s body was the most significant shot landed in the fourth round.
Paul caught Tyson with lefts and a sweeping right as he pressed the action in the first minute of the fifth round. A reluctant Tyson mostly covered up and either wouldn’t — or couldn’t — fire back.
Many in the enormous crowd expressed their displeasure with a lack of entertainment once the bell rang to end the sixth round. Neither fighter even attempted to mount much offense in those two minutes.
There wasn’t much action during the eighth round, though a right-left combination by Paul backed up Tyson late in the seventh round. It seemed to be a forgone conclusion by then that they would go the distance.
Tyson hadn’t competed in an official fight since gigantic Irish underdog Kevin McBride made him quit on his stool following the sixth round in June 2005. The youngest heavyweight champion in boxing history had been brutally beaten by British underdog Danny Williams and WBC champ Lennox Lewis in two knockout defeats during the three years prior to his career-ending loss to McBride.
An apologetic Tyson admitted after asking out of the McBride bout that he no longer had a passion for boxing and shouldn’t fight again.
Nineteen years later, he agreed to face a 27-year-old opponent who, while a cruiserweight during his brief boxing career, is in his physical prime. Paul also produced vicious knockouts of former UFC welterweight champ Tyron Woodley, retired NBA point guard Nate Robinson, and comparably experienced cruiserweights Andre August and Ryan Bourland before he encountered Tyson.