Conor McGregor’s $1million punt on a sporting double was dashed after Jake Paul outpointed Mike Tyson in the ring.
The brash Irish UFC star threw full support behind boxing legend Tyson, who was stepping into the squared circle for his first pro fight in roughly 20 years. Unfortunately for McGregor, Tyson stumbled to a decision loss against YouTube sensation-turned-boxer Paul in Texas.
Taking to Instagram just before the bout, McGregor boldly backed Tyson to triumph, slapping down a hefty sum on Paul, who boasts a solitary defeat, to taste defeat again. His wager: “My two fight bets this weekend! Tyson KO, Jones Stoppage. $1million double on.” The post seems to have vanished since then, reports the Mirror.
McGregor now finds himself stung for almost £800,000, rendering the second half of his flutter null and void. And he deleted a series of tweets posted from his X account before and during the bout – the first after Tyson inadvertently had shown his bare bottom in a wardrobe malfunction.
McGregor’s account tweeted: “A solid buttocks, nipples like cigars, knockout power. Mike is truly God’s creation! God bless Iron Mike!” But it was a further tweet sent during the fight that caused outrage.
(Image: No credit)
Fans slammed the UFC star for seemingly referencing American Puerto-Rican boxer Prichard Colon, who was left paralysed with life-altering injuries after he came out a coma following a fight in 2015 when he suffered severe injuries. Posting on X after Paul beat Tyson, McGregor’s account wrote: “They are eyeing Prichard Colon for next opponent.”
The message was later deleted, but not before it was widely shared and condemned by fans, along with another post in which McGregor’s account said: “A 16minute spar in sparring gloves. F*** off.”
The Dublin brawler was rooting for Jon Jones in UFC 309’s big showdown with Stipe Miocic this Saturday in New York’s legendary MSG. Jones makes a much-anticipated comeback after a layoff spanning over a year and a half, looking to maintain an unbeaten run inside the octagon. Having sized up Miocic ahead of their clash, Jones reckoned: “His eyes didn’t show me anything that I should be worried about.”
After the Texas turmoil at the AT&T Stadium, where fans left in droves before the final bell, McGregor’s hopes for a betting bonanza have been torched. And he wasn’t the only one left disappointed by an underwhelming and sad spectacle.
Paul heaped praise on his much older rival, insisting: ” Mike Tyson, he’s a legend. He’s the greatest to ever do it. I look up to him and we wouldn’t be here today without him. This man is an icon and it’s an honour to fight him. It was tough like I expected it to be.”
Tyson reflected on the match, saying: “I’m not surprised (it went the distance). I knew he was a good fighter, I came prepared. I didn’t prove nothing to anybody, only to myself. I’m just happy with what I can do.”
The boxing legend shunned excuses, declaring: “Yeah, but I can’t use that as an excuse, because if I did, I wouldn’t be in here.”
Paul also confessed that Tyson was exactly what he anticipated, emphasizing: “He’s exactly what I thought, one of the greatest to ever do it. This night is not about me. I want to thank the real heroes, the US military, the doctor’s, the nurses, the nurses in the ER, the cops, the farmers… all the people that make this world go around.”