The decision to proceed with the fight has been widely criticised within the boxing community, primarily because of the significant 31-year age difference between the two fighters. Despite these apprehensions, Tyson insists he’s fit and will be ready to step into the ring later this week.
While Tyson is poised to receive another hefty payday, it will be significantly less than his initial asking price. On an episode of his Hotboxin podcast two years ago, the seasoned boxer demanded $1billion to take on the social media sensation.
In a candid exchange with Jermell Charlo and Paul Pierce, Tyson made it clear that money was the deciding factor for any potential bout with Paul, stating: “Hey, I ain’t got no f****** money. So where’s the f****** contract? ” Despite denying knowledge of any negotiations with the YouTube-turned-boxer, he admitted to socialising with Paul, including using substances together.
“I ain’t know nothing about it. Listen, I’ve been smoking with him forever, I did some shrooms with him as well. But I’ve never heard this. I was with him in St. Barts not too long ago partying and he never told me this. I’ve never heard this from nobody, I’ve just heard this from you guys. We got to get some more man s***, blue-eyed, blonde hair, that s**t is very expensive, we need to get some more money, man.”
When pressed on his price to step into the ring with Paul, Tyson didn’t hold back: “a billion bucks.”
Despite his flippant remark about the hefty sum, the 58 year old heavyweight legend has previously indicated that his reasons for returning to boxing aren’t financially driven. Nowadays, Tyson’s income is largely derived from his cannabis business rather than his fighting career.
He expressed a greater interest in the challenge posed by facing Jake Paul than in the monetary gain, as evidenced during his commentary at a Cage Wars MMA event in September, where he mentioned: “I could be waiting on a check every day from cannabis,”.
“That’s bulls*** for me. I’m a man; I want to go out there and I want to expose myself to risk. Sometimes I want to see who I really am. I want to see what I’m really made out of. I want to perform in front of the world. To me, that’s all I ever knew how to do since I was 14. This fight is not going to change my life financially enough. This is just what I want to do.”