It appears Mike Tyson believes in the old boxing mantra that “women weaken legs.”
And apparently weed does too.
Tyson, the former heavyweight champion, revealed he has given up sex and marijuana during his training for his upcoming July 20 Netflix bout at AT&T Stadium against Jake Paul.
The 57-year-old provided different timelines for how long he has refrained.
“Two-and-a-half weeks I haven’t smoked, I haven’t had sex for two-and-a-half weeks,” Tyson said on “The Damon Elliott Show” while detailing his training.
He also told Forbes: “Probably six weeks I haven’t gotten high or had sex.”
Tyson has been married to Lakiha Spicer, his third wife, since 2009.
Whether it’s been two-and-a-half weeks or six, Tyson is making it clear he is giving up two of his favorite activities as he prepares for his first bout since an exhibition draw against Roy Jones Jr. in 2020.
Tyson is a big proponent of using marijuana, with his Tyson 2.0 company selling cannabis.
But there appear to be different motivations behind why he’s refraining from using it.
“Discipline, doing what you hate to do but doing it like you love it,” he told the outlet. “I hate not being able to smoke but I’m doing it like I love it. I hate not to be able to sleep with my wife and I’m doing it like I love it.”
However, his publicist told USA Today that Tyson is not using weed since it is on the banned substances list for the Texas Department of Licensing and Regulation, which oversees combat sports in the state.
Regarding his sex ban, this actually is not the first time he’s done so.
He seemingly confirmed to Graham Bensinger in 2011 that he gave up sex for five years in his prime, albeit with some regrests.
“Yeah, because I’m an idiot, ya know?” Tyson said. “It’s just so stupid. I just went by what people told me, boxing going to mess you up, girls, boxing. I entered this profession a total brainless individual looking for glory.”
Clearly, Tyson doesn’t think that abstinence during training is still for an “idiot” and he’s hoping it will help him hand Paul just his second loss.
Tyson is still the underdog in the fight, but bettors have been backing him and forced an odds shift.
He opened as a +225 underdog against Paul at BetUS but has since moved to +105.
Clips of Tyson training for the fight have emerged, both for better and for worse, and he seems confident with the fight less than three months out.
“It’s just concentrating, three times a day, and it’s just consistent training,” Tyson told Forbes of his training. “Health, diet, agility.”
