Mike Tyson vs Jake Paul Predictions: Requiem For A Fighter And His Sport

Mike Tyson vs Jake Paul Betting Tips

• Draw @ 9/1
• Will the fight go the distance? Yes @ 7/4

It feels apropos that this circus rolls into town in the aftermath of Donald Trump becoming president-elect. Both the recent election and this bout feature a blonde-coiffed chancer who has been elevated far above their level of competency. 

Trump also used to host Tyson fights at his Atlantic City venues. Both ‘Iron’ Mike and the erstwhile The Apprentice host represent parts of American history that the country just can’t let go.

Tyson gave us something sweet to remember him by back in 2020. While the pandemic swallowed much of our way of life, the one-time ‘Kid Dynamite’ broke one million pay-per-view buys for a fun move-around with fellow faded icon Roy Jones Jr. The spirited-but-safe exhibition hinted at each man’s prime without threatening to revive it. It was as good-natured an outing as Mike has ever had.

Tyson looked more like himself than expected. Furthermore, he looked more like himself than he did when he ghosted out of the game following back-to-back losses against unworthy conquerors Danny Williams and Kevin McBride. 

Boxing has never been a sport that allowed sleeping dogs to lie, rarely permitting its legends to bow out with grace. Tyson looked good and thus the sport saw more gas in the tank to be siphoned. 

The ‘Iron’ one resisted the calls for a long time. Ridiculous chatter of an exhibition with Tyson Fury was thankfully extinguished. Suggestions that he reopen old scars against Evander Holyfield and Lennox Lewis were rebutted. It seemed like Tyson, visibly happier than he had ever appeared, would return to retirement.

But money talks and perhaps the only person to talk louder in recent years has been Jake Paul. ‘The Problem Child’ had been pursuing a world ranking and a transition to the serious side of the boxing game. After feasting on UFC corpses in most of his fights, outboxing men who were never boxers and who had retired from their natural sport, he turned his attention to Tommy Fury. 

Despite being the most rudimentary of pros, Tyson Fury’s little brother defeated Paul and put the brakes on his hopes of legitimacy in boxing. After a couple of lukewarm wins over journeymen foes and picking over more MMA bones against Nate Diaz and Mike Perry, the influencer has opted for the only play he has left. Paul has reached out to the one fighter who ticks all the boxes. 

Mike Tyson is outrageously famous, so much so that even Jake’s audience of YouTube fans know who he is. He is 58 years old. Paul’s modus operandi is trading on the names of the past. Crucially, Tyson is also a boxer. Jake hears the cries that, in fighting UFC legends, NBA players and influencers, he is essentially boxing without boxing. A win over Tyson, in Paul’s mind, will legitimise his involvement in the sport.

It won’t, of course. Few fight fans put much stock in Larry Holmes or Trevor Berbick’s wins over an aged Muhammad Ali. Nobody takes notice of the aforementioned late-career losses Tyson suffered to McBride and Williams. Rocky Marciano’s crushing of the once-untouchable Joe Louis is not what his immense legacy was built on. 

If Paul beats Tyson, did he really beat the former undisputed heavyweight champion of the world? Or did he beat a shadow? A whisper in the wind? A distortion of a once-dominant athlete?

Of course, we are led to believe that the crusher of old still exists. In short, sharp bursts, I expect he does. Jones certainly felt some sizzle in Tyson’s body shots at times. Mike’s Instagram feed is full of ferocity, albeit in clips that last a maximum of 20 seconds. They say power is the last thing to go and if Tyson slips one of Jake’s uneducated punches and snaps in a counter, who knows?

This fight has exhibition-like rules. The eight rounds will each be two minutes in duration, the same as Tyson’s run-out with Jones. The gloves will be 14oz rather than 10oz. But here’s the kicker: this is a sanctioned professional bout. If Paul wins, he will officially have a victory over Tyson. If ‘Iron’ Mike turns back the clock, then his official career ends in victory rather than the ignominious McBride defeat.

Tyson was initially supposed to fight Paul in July, before a stomach ulcer scotched that plan. With that weighty and concerning knowledge, one simply hopes that the Hall of Famer emerges from this curious collision with his health intact. 

It might not be a big fight hope that sets the pulse racing. You won’t find it on the promotional posters. But all I really want from this so-called superfight is Tyson to be able to walk away from it. Even against a talent as negligible as Paul, that is no guarantee considering his age and health.