By: Sean Crose
“Will you please promise me you’re going to kick this guys ass and shut him up?” This was the question Fox News host Sean Hannity asked Mike Tyson on his show Tuesday night. Tyson, who clearly knew Hannity at least fairly well, good naturedly responded to the host’s request. “I will do just that for you,” he said, referring to his July 20th battle with Jake Paul. Although he’s 58 years of age compared to Paul’s 27 years, the legendary former heavyweight champion appeared completely confident. “I don’t think he’s faster than me,” he said of Paul matter of factly.
Although the much anticipated Tyson-Paul fight will be an exhibition, Tyson made it clear that he’s taking the match seriously. “I train every day,” he said. “The process goes through the whole day. I get up in the morning, do the roadwork, then I go to the gym at one, then I go to the strength and condition guy, then it starts all over again.” Although, like Hannity, many are hoping to see the brash Paul get wiped out, Tyson made it clear he has respect for the man. “He’s come a long way from YouTubing,” Tyson said of Paul. “This guy’s going to come, he’s going to try to hurt me – which I’m accustomed to – and he’s going to be greatly mistaken.”
Tyson then opened up in a way some – perhaps many – might find surprising. “Whatever I’m afraid to do, I do it,” he said. “Anything I’m afraid of I confront it and that’s my personality.” Tyson even went so far as to admit he’s afraid of facing Paul. “Right now I’m scared to death,” he admitted, “but as the fight gets closer the less nervous I become, because it’s reality, and in reality, I’m invincible… I always believed that adversity or nervousness catapulted me to success. If i didn’t have these feelings, I wouldn’t go into this fight.” It’s a fascinating outlook, yet it’s one that makes sense for those who have followed Tyson down through the decades. “Never for money,” Tyson said. “Only glory. I would never risk my health for money.”
With that being said, Tyson wanted to let fans know they would get their money’s worth when he and Paul square off in Arlington, Texas this summer. “This is called an exhibition,” he said, “but if you look up exhibition, you will not see any of the laws we’re fighting under. This is a fight.”
