'I was still terrified of him'… Joe Rogan and Russell Crowe detail concerns over Mike Tyson and Jake Paul fight
24/08/2024 17:58
UFC commentator Joe Rogan and Hollywood star Russell Crowe have opened up about their concerns as Mike Tyson prepares to make his ring return.
The legendary heavyweight boxing champion turned 58 this summer, and is plotting to fight YouTuber-turned-boxer Jake Paul on November 15. Netflix will air the bout as their first ever live combat sport event, regardless of controversy over the match-making.
Paul is 31 years Tyson’s junior, and is an active professional boxer who competed four times between last August and the beginning of this month. Meanwhile, Tyson’s last outing was an exhibition in 2020 after retiring in 2004.
- Who is Joe Rogan?Get to know the UFC mainstay and podcast sensation
Joe Rogan explains how Mike Tyson is still ferocious despite his advanced age
As a major figure in the fight game, Joe Rogan’s opinion is one of the more respected in combat. He has had Mike Tyson as a guest on his podcast a number of times, and is also a fan of Jake Paul’s moves in the fighting world.
But he still has his concerns about Tyson’s age, despite feeling that his elite athleticism will make him more dangerous than almost anyone else at the age. During a recent episode of his show with actor Russell Crowe, Rogan detailed his issues with the fight, and also how the boxing icon can win.
“58 is 58, no matter what you’re taking and what they’re doing for you,” Rogan told Crowe. “You’re still 58. But, 58-year-old Mike Tyson is not 50-year-old Mike Jones that lives down the street, it’s a different kind of human being.
“He can still knock your head into another dimension if he can catch you. The thing is, can he catch a 28-year-old guy who’s at the top of his career who is winning legitimate boxing matches? I mean, he’s beating former UFC world champions like Tyron Woodley.
“Jake had that very good fight with Tommy Fury who’s a legitimate boxer, that was a very good fight. And he just beat up Mike Perry who was a bare knuckle champion, he’s a real fighter, he can fight and if Mike Tyson and him are fighting and Mike can’t catch him? Then it’s hard to tell.
“When Mike is hitting pads he looks great, but it’s hard to tell when someone is hitting pads. If he can do that for eight rounds, great. But can he do that? I don’t know, he had to pull out of the first fight because he had an ulcer.”
Russell Crowe expresses concern over Mike Tyson vs Jake Paul fight
Russell Crowe is no stranger to boxing himself, starring in the Oscar-nominated hit film Cinderella Man where he played heavyweight champion James Braddock. He has visited with Tyson on a number of occasions and feels that there is another concern beyond his physical changes.
“The thing is, I was quite enjoying the second phase of Mike’s life,” Crowe explained. “I was terrified of him as a boxer. He was terrifying. Even when I met him backstage at a stadium one time at a fight, I was like ‘I’m still terrified of you’.
“Then that guy he started becoming where he became more explorative and he was looking into what the meaning of life is and having a smoke every now and then? I was like, ‘I’m enjoying this Mike, I’m liking the evolution’.
“What bothers me with this whole thing is that he’s got to kind of slide back into that warrior and I’m just not sure that he needed to do it.”
Mike Tyson insists he is fit and in camp for Jake Paul fight
Paul and Tyson went head-to-head last weekend in New York City for their first press conference promoting the new November date. The pair faced off in front of a packed crowd numbering over 2,000 at Fanatics Fest, with fans making their feelings towards the social media star clear.
Tyson looked fitter than he has in recent months following his health scares. And he insisted that he has returned to full training to be ready for their fight at the AT&T Stadium in Arlington, Texas.
"I'm beautiful and I've been training," Tyson replied when asked by Bloody Elbow what his latest medical update was from doctors. "I've been training for a while, two weeks or three weeks and I'm okay to fight… I'm in camp right now."
