Jake Paul overcame Mike Tyson in November (Image: AP)
Boxing icon Roy Jones Jr has expressed his disappointment in ‘s performance against and called out the YouTuber-turned-boxer.
Jones’ last fight was in 2023, where he suffered a majority decision defeat to former UFC lightweight champion Anthony Pettis. This marked Jones Jr’s first professional fight since his victory over Scott Sigmon in 2018, but he did participate in an exhibition match against Tyson in 2020, which ended in a predictable draw.
Tyson returned to the ring four years later for a heavyweight bout with Paul in Texas, losing a points decision after eight boring rounds. And Jones Jr, who provided commentary for the match, revealed his dissatisfaction with ‘The Problem Child’s’ performance against the 58-year-old legend.
“The fight really did not live up to the hype,” . “You have a 58-year-old man against a 27-year-old man. We expected more because Mike was a former great and still is a great. Jake is just a guy learning the game. We expected more fireworks from Mike, and Jake, really. To be honest, you got your money’s worth in the two fights before that in Mario Barrios vs. Abel Ramos and Katie Taylor vs. Amanda Serrano. To me, you didn’t get cheated out of anything.”
While Jones Jr revealed he hasn’t had any discussions about facing the young American, he insisted he’d beat Paul in the ring. “I haven’t had any conversations about fighting Jake Paul. I am not really a full-fledged heavyweight, but I weigh probably what he weighs right now,” he added. It wouldn’t be hard to match his weight, I guess. They do catch weights, so I’m sure we could figure out the right weight. We can make it happen. The only thing different though is he will probably have to take me out because I’m coming to knock him out.
“I’m going to get him, or he’s going to get me. It would be very difficult to pick him apart because he is so powerful and big. He has power and is a dangerous puncher. I would beat him, I’m sure, but you would have to be on your A-game all night, especially at my age.”
In the aftermath of his win over Tyson, Paul revealed that despite the intense pre-fight trash talk, he had no desire to knock out the legend when it became clear he was merely trying to survive as his age began to take its toll. “I wanted to give the fans a show but I didn’t want to hurt someone that didn’t need to be hurt,” Paul explained. “There was a point where he (Tyson) was not engaging back, I could just tell his age was showing a little bit. That violence war thing… that went away as the rounds went on.”
Paul also addressed his reputation for being a polarizing figure, stating, “People just love to hate me. I intentionally say things for people to hate. That’s what I like to do. If people want to see more… give me a couple of months. I tried to give the best fight I possibly could. When someone’s just surviving in the ring, it’s hard to make it exciting. I don’t care what people have to say. It is what it is.”