By: Sean Crose
It seems the present will nonetheless go on. After the July novelty bout between former heavyweight legend Mike Tyson and the brash Jake Paul was postponed as a consequence of an in-flight incident involving an infected ulcer Tyson was affected by, a brand new date has been set. “New date, identical place, identical destiny,” Paul posted on social media Friday morning. The 2 males at the moment are scheduled to fulfill November fifteenth at AT&T Stadium in Arlington, Texas. As a shock to many, the extremely anticipated occasion won’t seem on Pay Per View. Relatively, the cardboard can be aired stay on Netflix.
Whereas it’s unquestionably going to be a profitable and wildly common affair, there’s concern that the combat will in the end be seen as a bridge too far for the game of boxing. Tyson, in any case, can be 58 years of age when he steps into the ring subsequent autumn in Texas. What’s extra, it would have been practically 20 years because the man final fought professionally. On prime of that, Tyson was removed from his former self in his final skilled combat (a 2005 loss to Kevin McBride). One can solely imaging the model of Tyson that may present up in November by no fault of his personal, however merely because of the passing of time.
Tyson, nevertheless, is a kind of figures folks see completely by the prism of their reminiscences (Michael Jordan additionally occupies that rarified air) Tyson was scary, enormously dominant and intensely expert within the late Eighties…and other people unquestionably proceed to see him that method at the moment. The identical possible goes for youthful folks, who’ve been introduced with a picture of Tyson from the previous, one which presents the Brooklynite as an unstoppable drive. Tyson actually got here throughout as an unstoppable drive in his heyday. He was that good. However Reagan was nonetheless within the White Home.
Whereas none of this implies Tyson will lose to Paul, it does current an fascinating query: How a lot is an excessive amount of? Whereas Tyson might lay Paul out (energy is the very last thing to go on a fighter) these previous legs will begin feeling lots older if the far youthful Paul lasts greater than two or three rounds. After which what? A call win? A call loss? A knockout loss? Something is probably going at that time, which isn’t what a variety of viewers can be hoping for. They need the Tyson of previous. Perhaps they’ll really get him, or a model near that younger warrior. Boxing is an odd sport, in any case.
It’s additionally a really harmful one. Which is why it’s good to view this with some objectivity.
