Mike Tyson has revealed his diet was to blame for pulling out of the original date with YouTuber-turned-boxer Jake Paul.
The 58-year-old was scheduled to go head-to-head with ‘The Problem Child’ back in July, but was forced to pull out of the contest after suffering an ulcer flare-up. The boxing icon was forced to stop training on his doctor’s order, but has recently returned to the gym and insists he will be fit to face the 27-year-old next month.
The controversial showdown between the two stars is scheduled to take place on November 15 at the ATandT Arena in Arlington, Texas, in front of up to 90,000 fans.
It will be recognised as a professional outing and will take place in the heavyweight division. Since the fight was rebooked, many across the boxing community have slammed the decision to still go ahead with the contest and have feared for Tyson’s health.
In a recent interview with Mail Online, ‘Iron Mike’ revealed he is now ‘ulcer-free’, and has claimed his diet was to blame for his previous health issues. “I was doing too much bad food and stuff, and I got sick,” he said. However, Tyson has said he’s now avoiding ‘processed foods’ and is ‘eating clean’ for the clash with the young American.
Tyson also gave his thoughts on how the clash might affect his legacy. That said, it appears that he’s uninterested in what his critics have to save about the contest and what it could to his legendary status.
“I didn’t take this fight for legacy,” he said. “I think legacy really, to my perspective, legacy is ego. Who gives a f*** how people think about them when they are gone? I’m dead. I can’t value off what somebody might think about me when I’m dead, so it means nothing to me.”
With Tyson now ‘ulcer-free’ and eating clean, it would appear that all system are go for the showdown with the social media sensation. That said, fans remain unconvinced and believe that ‘Iron Mike’ is not taking the fight with Paul seriously. During a recent chat with Jimmy Kimmel, Tyson claimed he was training six hours a day. “I am training extremely hard, I do six hours a day. I start at 11am and might leave the gym at 5pm,” he said.
Kimmel looked stunned and replied: “Oh no. 11am? So that’s six hours straight, or is there a lunch break?” The former heavyweight champion admitted there was a small break as a shocked Kimmel gasped: “Oh no.”
In the same interview, when Tyson was asked if he intends to be high during his bout with Paul, he replied: “I’m going to be so high off life, yeah.” Kimmel then asked: “Will you be high on marijuana, as well?” Tyson replied: “That’s a possibility, too.” The host then commented: “Oh no my bet is getting lower as we talk.”
Tyson hasn’t fought a professional bout in nearly two decades. His last came against Kevin McBride back in 2005, suffering a defeat in the fifth round.
As for Paul, the boxing star made his debut back in 2020 and has been seen regularly competing since. With a record of 10-1, the American’s only defeat came against Tommy Fury last year. ‘The Problem Child’ comes into the clash with ‘Iron Mike’ off the back of a win over former UFC fighter Mike Perry in July.
