A bemused Mike Tyson didn’t have much to say during a press conference to promote his Nov. 15 fight against Jake Paul, which will be streamed live on Netflix. The press conference took place Sunday at Fanatics Fest in New York City.
Paul relished his role as the villain, drawing boos from fans in attendance and responding with insults and obscene gestures. Calling himself an “anti-hero,” Paul compared himself to Muhammad Ali, who was “the most hated and criticized boxer” during his career.
Host Ryan Clark repeatedly tried to goad Tyson into making provocative statements and insulting people. Paul taunted him for postponing the fight, originally scheduled for July 20, apparently due to an ulcer flare-up — or as Paul called it, “a little menopausal break.”
Mike Tyson refuses to be drawn into Jake Paul’s filthy comments at their press conference today ahead of November 15: “You old son of a bitch. I’m gonna discipline you like a son.”
( @Netflix) pic.twitter.com/Xxyvdl2ilj
— Michael Benson (@MichaelBensonn) August 18, 2024
Yet Tyson, 58, seemed uninterested, frequently shaking his head and raising his hands. At one point, he even asked the crowd to be “respectful.” Considering what Tyson has said about opponents Like Donovan Ruddock and Lennox Lewis in the past, it was disappointing.
The former world heavyweight champion acted as if he knew this was a spectacle, a professional wrestling spectacle. Most of his previous fights had real championship stakes. Or maybe Tyson has gotten used to being a lovable, almost comical character, instead of the once frightening presence he was in the sport.
Meanwhile, Paul, 27, frequently mentioned what this fight could do for him and his validity as a boxer if he knocked out a legend and made history – even with their age difference of more than 30 years.
Because of his refusal to engage, Tyson’s message seemed to be that he would talk in the ring. Or maybe everyone already knows what Tyson is capable of, and so he has nothing to prove – unlike Paul, whose exploits are orchestrated, in the eyes of many boxing fans.
Perhaps Tyson simply had to get into the mood for the show in his own way. Toward the end of the press conference, once the boxers began taking questions from reporters, he provided some quotes, saying he was going to “fuck (Paul) up.”
“As soon as I catch this guy, it’s completely over,” implying that Paul would spend most of the fight running from him.
Ultimately, Tyson doesn’t seem to have taken Paul—or this whole enterprise—very seriously. When the two posed for their face-off, Tyson laughed and playfully shoved Paul, who maintained a fearsome demeanor. If Tyson is behaving this way in the ring, it could be to Paul’s advantage. However, it wouldn’t help dispel the idea that the legendary boxer is doing this simply to…