Jake Paul and Mike Tyson have been encouraged to cancel their ‘mismatch’ showdown.
‘Iron Mike’ is set to step back in the ring aged 58 to take on YouTube star Jake Paul in a blockbuster summer fight, a fight which has seen him given medical warnings given their 31-year age difference.
Tyson has been documenting his training in footage posted to social media, with some fans surprisingly impressed by his punch power and suggesting he will beat Paul.
And his new footage crushing the pads with trainer Rafael Cordeiro, has been met by new pleas from fans for Paul to abandon the fight plans.
One commented: « Jake, you can still say no. It’s okay.
Another agreed: « Wow, if just one of those punches lands, Paul will be in the ICU. »
One fan suggested: « Jake’s gonna need to borrow some of those pads from Mike’s trainer. »
A fan observed: « Look at his coaches’ face, he is fearing for his life. »
One even wrote: « If Mike Tyson doesn’t win… this was fixed. »
But not all fans were convinced by the footage, with one writing: « Run Tyson. Get your wind back. You’re gonna need it for this fight trust me. »
One pleaded: « Hey Champ, can you show us a video of you hitting mitts or the heavy bag for 3 mins straight? If not just cancel it! »
A fan predicted: « I hope you all know Mike isn’t beating Jakey. »
Although a final user concluded: « It’s okay to back out Jake Paul or Mike Tyson, I’m just saying.. »
Paul himself even responded to the footage, writing in the comments: « He’s the best ever. The most brutal and vicious, and most ruthless champion there’s ever been. And I will defeat him. »
It is clear Tyson is still one of the best around in short bursts, but it remains to be seen if he can keep up his work for an eight-round period.
The former undisputed champion already suffered a damaging defeat to the end of his professional career losing three of his four final fights before retirement in 2005.
Paul will be the younger and fresher fighter at just 26 despite having far less experience in the ring.
This will be his 11th professional fight, a record that boast nine wins and six knockouts though Tyson is the biggest name on an impressive list so far.
And it seems like Paul is bigger. Three-weight champion Shane Mosley said: « He’s 230 pounds. He’s big, really big. He said he feels as fast as he does at 185. »
Still, a proportion of fans are still certain that Paul will lose, after seeing training footage compared side-by-side.
Tyson’s trainer has insisted the veteran is working harder than ever, and will be primed in time for their summer battle.
A cancellation certainly seems unlikely as over 108,000 people have signed up for access to the ticket pre-sale, according to Paul’s promoter Most Valuable Promotions.
They tweeted earlier this month: « As of this morning #PaulTyson / #TaylorSerrano has over 108K signed up for access to the ticket pre-sale.
« Next week we will announce press conference dates and the ticket on-sale date. Pre-sale will be two days prior to on-sale. »
Source: Talk Sport