JAKE Paul proved the old boxing cliche that Father Time is undefeated as he outlasted Mike Tyson over eight rounds in Texas. Streamed live on Netflix, while the hype matched Tyson’s wild peak years, the effort in the ring showed every minute of his 58 years. At 27, YouTuber Paul used his strength and athleticism to manoeuvre Mike around the ring and deplete his remaining reserves quickly.
The three judges offered scant nostalgic emotion as David Iacobucci gave Paul every round at 80-72, while Laurence Cole and Jesse Reyes awarded Tyson a sentimental round each at 79-73. Mark Calo-Oy refereed the contest.
The fight followed a typical late-career Tyson pattern as he came storming out of the blocks, trying to ruffle up his opponent before the energy levels gently sapped. Tyson’s jab worked reasonably well in round one before Paul landed a well-timed overhand right to assert his position.
Tyson’s aggression led him into three consecutive grazing left hooks in the third as Tyson briefly wobbled on ageing legs supported by a right knee brace.
Paul’s measuring stick jab was keeping Tyson at bay. The simple right hands and left hooks caught the ex-champion as he stood off for long spells, gasping for air, almost turning southpaw at times as he squared up.
Jake Paul briefly stopped in the final 10 seconds to bow and praise the faded legend, who offered a glove of respect, which Paul refused, knowing the old dog still had some bite even after 16 minutes of tepid toil.
Tyson was still breathing heavily as the scores were read out, confirming what everybody already knew: his era was long gone and boxing remains a young man’s game.
As expected, this was a highlights package affair that showed brief glimpses of both men’s abilities alongside long lulls of non-action, berated by an increasingly restless crowd.
Heaping praise on Tyson afterwards, Paul soaked up the final juice of his opponent’s reputation by labelling him as an icon, a legend and the ‘Baddest Man on the Planet’. Maybe once, but not now.