Mike Tyson Says He’s ‘Scared to Death’ About Jake Paul Fight: ‘That’s My Personality’

Doric SamApril 3, 2024

Michele Eve Sandberg/Icon Sportswire via Getty Images

Legendary boxer Mike Tyson is used to the big stage, but that doesn’t mean he’s immune to pressure.

Ahead of his scheduled match against Jake Paul this summer, Tyson revealed that despite being the “Baddest Man on the Planet,” he still gets butterflies to this day.

“I have a weird personality—I don’t think it’s weird though. Whatever I’m afraid to do, I do it. That’s how it is,” Tyson said during an appearance on Hannity on Tuesday night. “I was afraid of the Roy [Jones Jr.] fight [in 2020]. I was 100 pounds overweight, I was however old, 54, 53, and I said ‘Let’s do it.’ Anything I’m afraid of, I confront it. That’s my personality. Right now, I’m scared to death.”

Now 57, Tyson is gearing up to face a boxer 30 years his junior. The 27-year-old Paul has a 9-1 record in 10 professional fights and is coming off back-to-back first-round knockout victories.

“I saw a YouTube of him at 16 doing weird dances. That’s not the guy I’m gonna be fighting,” Tyson said of Paul. “This guy is gonna come, he’s gonna try to hurt me, which I’m accustomed to, and he’s gonna be greatly mistaken.”

Tyson and Paul are set to face each other on July 20 at AT&T Stadium in Arlington, Texas, and the bout will be streamed live on Netflix. It will be Tyson’s first time back in the ring since his 2020 exhibition against Jones, but he believes his nerves will fuel him in his return.

“I always believed that adversity and nervousness pretty much catapulted me into success,” he said. “If I didn’t have these feelings, I wouldn’t go into this fight. I have to have these feelings to fight. Without them, I would never go in the ring.”