Texas (Web Desk): Former heavyweight boxing champion Mike Tyson suffered a one-sided defeat in his highly anticipated return to the ring on Friday, losing to Jake Paul by unanimous decision in a heavyweight bout in Arlington, Texas.
The fight, held at AT&T Stadium, saw Tyson, 58, struggle to connect with meaningful punches throughout the eight rounds.
Paul, 27, was in control from the start, using his quicker footwork and superior movement to keep the aging Tyson at bay. The judges scored the fight overwhelmingly in Paul's favor, with all three cards reading 80-72, 79-73, and 79-73.
Despite the build-up to the fight, including a tense moment at the weigh-in where Tyson slapped Paul, the contest itself lacked drama.
Tyson was unable to land any significant blows, while Paul continued to dominate with his faster hands and sharper technique.
The turning point came in the third round when Paul landed a flurry of punches that left Tyson visibly shaken.
However, Paul couldn't secure the knockout he had predicted, though he comfortably outpointed his older opponent. Tyson was only able to land 18 of his 97 punches, while Paul landed 78 out of 278.
As the final bell rang, Paul showed respect for his opponent, bowing towards Tyson and acknowledging his legendary status.
"Mike Tyson is the greatest to ever do it," Paul said after the fight. "He’s the GOAT, he’s a legend, and I’m inspired by him."
Tyson, for his part, was philosophical about the result, expressing contentment with his performance despite the loss.
"I came to fight," he remarked, adding that the fight was about proving something to himself, not to anyone else. He also dismissed suggestions that his performance had been affected by a knee brace, saying, "If I did, I wouldn’t be in here."
The event attracted a massive crowd of around 70,000 spectators, with millions more watching worldwide.
Tyson’s participation had been met with skepticism, with many questioning the wisdom of his return at his age, especially after a health scare earlier in the year that led to the fight being postponed.
He had suffered an ulcer flare-up during a flight, which had caused him to vomit blood. Despite such concerns, Tyson insisted that critics were mostly driven by envy of his enduring popularity.
Mike Tyson had received a reported $20 million to take part in the contest, which came 19 years after his last official professional fight, a loss to Kevin McBride in 2005.
While in his ring walk on Friday, dressed in his iconic black trunks and poncho, briefly harked back to his glory days in the 1980s, his performance in the fight revealed just how much he had aged.
Paul, by contrast, kept his distance, controlling the pace of the fight and never giving Tyson a real chance to turn the tide.
Although Tyson's comeback was far from successful, he didn’t rule out future bouts, saying, "I don’t think so," when asked if this would be his last fight.
As the boxing world digests the result, the debate over Tyson’s decision to return to the ring at his age will likely continue.