- Tyson makes pro comeback against YouTuber-turned-boxer after 19 years
- Final pre-bout press conference on Wednesday night was a largely tepid affair
- But former champion Bellew performed a stunt and threw shade on both after
British former cruiserweight champion Tony Bellew has thrown shade on Jake Paul and Mike Tyson ahead of the fight that is on everyone’s lips.
Tyson, undisputed world heavyweight champion between 1987 and 1990, is due to make a long-awaited return to the professional boxing fray in his fight against the YouTuber-turned-boxer in Arlington, Texas, on Friday.
The bout was pushed back from its original date in July but a stomach ulcer flare-up while on a plane meant 58-year-old Tyson was advised to delay the contest.
‘Problem Child’ Paul, 27, tried to get under his opponent’s skin at a press conference on Wednesday night but barbs about Tyson’s age, personality and the incident when he bit part of Evander Holyfield’s ear off in 1997 failed to land.
Crashing the pre-fight event, Bellew performed his own dig at the pair, bringing a ‘great-grandfather’ along as a suggested next opponent for the influencer as part of an apparent publicity stunt for a bookmaker, and spoke to IFL TV about the fight afterwards.
Tony Bellew has poked digs at both Mike Tyson and Jake Paul ahead of Friday’s huge fight
Tyson squared off with Paul in a largely tepid final pre-fight press conference on Wednesday
Tony Bellew mocked the pair by introducing a pensioner as Paul’s next opponent
He said: ‘I’m petrified to be honest. Of course he could [hurt Tyson] he’s half the age.
‘He’s a grandfather mate. It’s a 58-year-old grandfather.
‘I’m 41, I play golf a couple of times a week and I’ve got a fat belly and he wouldn’t stand a single hope in hell against me.
‘I wouldn’t even need to train. I could just get in the ring and lamp him out pretty quickly.
‘I’m praying and hoping he doesn’t get through Mike. He would never entertain me mate, there’s just no way in a million years.’
Bellew, who retired in 2018 after losing to Oleksandr Usyk, then suggested Paul fight his sidekick for the evening, Norman, who also seemed to be representing the bookmaker.
The former fighter claimed that Norman is a ‘great-grandfather’ and has ‘two new hips’ and is ‘ready to rock and roll whenever’, except on Thursday – his bingo night.
The pair had to be escorted from the final pre-bout press conference on Wednesday night in what was a highlight of a rather tepid event.
Paul bet his entire purse with Irish fighter Katie Taylor that he would beat Tyson
‘Iron Mike’ was the undisputed heavyweight world champion for three years
The American last fought professionally in a defeat against Kevin McBride in June 2005
The temperature in the room did suddenly rise when the undercard fighters were asked to pick who would win the main event – and the majority tipped Tyson.
Paul was having none of it and got to his feet to confront those backing ‘Iron Mike’ to get the better of him.
One Tyson backer was Irish icon Taylor, who will face Amanda Serrano – a fighter promoted by Paul – in Friday’s co-main event, and she ended up betting the influencer’s entire £31m purse he would lose.
Paul is the favourite to emerge victorious, with many expecting him to be too fresh for Tyson given that he is 31 years his junior. But Tyson is adamant that he will roll back the years to shock the world in his first professional bout in almost two decades.
Tyson maintained his cool for the majority of Wednesday’s press conference, but did appear irritated when the prospect of losing was brought up by one reporter.
‘I will not lose,’ he shot back.