Mike Tyson’s trainer, Rafael Cordeiro, has zero concern about his soon-to-be 58-year-old boxer in his bout opposite half-his-age Jake Paul.
“I believe we don’t have to be concerned about it. We’re talking about a two-time world champion,” Cordeiro said on ‘The MMA Hour’ with Ariel Helwani. “The guy didn’t have 20 fights in two years; he knows how to fight.
“He’s fought against the best guys in the world,” Cordeiro continued. “When he steps inside the ring, he knows what to do. It’s not something new for Mike, and this fight is no different. He works hard every single day to go in there and try to knock Jake out from the beginning to the end. He’s going to prove that in July.”
His coach’s confidence is one thing, but MMA stars and more have criticized the bout, saying that Paul should not be fighting Tyson at such an advanced age.
One doctor told The Conversation that he does have concern for Tyson’s well-being in this fight where Paul (27) has showcased some serious punching power.
“In older people, the brain tends to lose volume,” Senior Lecturer in Medicine at Anglia Ruskin University Stephen Hughes wrote. “This lengthens the bridging veins and makes them more vulnerable to rupture.
“Bleeding from these torn veins causes a collection of blood that presses on the brain. This causes confusion, loss of consciousness, neurological disability and, in some cases, death.”Â
The immediate question is whether boxing can give Tyson their stamp of approval to compete in a sanctioned bout.
Tyson was last seen as a boxer in 2020 when he fought in an exhibition match against Roy Jones Jr.
There were plenty of issues with licensing in that match.
The bout against Jones Jr. was initially billed as an official match but athletic commissions wouldn’t sanction it.
The match did not wind up counting on either fighter’s record; no headshots were allowed, and no winner was declared.
Now it seems like the Tyson-Paul bout, which will be streamed on Netflix, will count on each fighter’s record and get the necessary approvals.
Tyson appears to be getting into great shape for the bout, likely in an attempt to prove to the Texas Department of Licensing and Regulation that he is fit to box Paul in a full eight-round fight.
Although it is likely Paul and Tyson chose AT&T Stadium in Dallas as the venue because they believed there would be no hiccups in the licensing process.
This fight would’ve been ripe for Saudi Arabia if Tyson was going to have a tough time with licensing.
Paul lost to Tommy Fury in Saudi Arabia in February 2023. The bout could not be sanctioned in the United States because of Fury’s visa issues.
