Jake Paul could end up in a “really bad way” in his fight with Mike Tyson if he doesn’t show the boxing great the “respect he deserves”.
That is the frank verdict of former world cruiserweight champion Tony Bellew, who believes it is “frightening” to see Tyson enter the ring with a fighter 30 years his junior.
Paul, 27, and Tyson, 57, will face off at the AT&T Stadium in Texas on July 20, in what will be Netflix’s first foray into live boxing broadcasting.
Tyson, a former world heavyweight champion, has not fought professionally since a defeat to Kevin McBride in 2005 and last fought in an exhibition against Roy Jones Jr in 2020.
Paul, meanwhile, has a 9-1 record in the ring and continues to navigate the crossover from YouTube star to fighter.
Bellew hopes Paul vs Tyson is a “circus”
The “Problem Child” will enter as a favorite against “Iron Mike” and Bellew is hopeful Tyson doesn’t end up hurt but concedes he would have probably took the fight, too, for the right price.
“I am worried about it personally but you don’t know what’s been agreed between the two,” Bellew told Spin Bet.
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Mike Tyson training with the medicine ball at age 57 ahead of the Jake Paul fight on July 20th…[🎥 @MikeTyson] pic.twitter.com/ZNUgaObNrl
— Michael Benson (@MichaelBensonn) March 21, 2024
“It’s frightening that Mike Tyson is going back into a boxing ring against somebody who is more than 30 years younger than him. It’s just a bit nuts.
“I’m hoping that the fight is a bit of a circus and a bit scripted because I wouldn’t want to see Mike get hurt in any way shape or form. Let’s see what happens.
“He is going to be getting paid an awful lot of money and nobody has the right to stop him from doing that.
“It is sad. I don’t want to see Mike Tyson get hurt, he is one of my idols and heroes, I love Mike Tyson and I don’t want to see him get hurt, but I understand it because everyone needs to get paid.
“Everybody has a price and all of these people saying on social media why is he doing that, they also have a price and everyone in the world does and if the price is right then get on with it.
“If somebody offers me the right price, then I’m sorry to say that I am fighting again. I hope Jake Paul gives him the respect he deserves, and I think he will, because if Mike kicks off then Jake Paul is in a really bad way. He’d pull his head off his neck.”