Mike Tyson responds to Eddie Hearn's refusal to watch Jake Paul fight

Mike Tyson delivered a stark reply to about the anticipated fight between the former heavyweight champion and YouTube personality

Earlier this month, Eddie Hearn made his stance abundantly clear on the contentious bout slated between and Paul, declaring it "dangerous, irresponsible and disrespectful to boxing". Expressing his intentions, he said that although he'll be present at AT&T Stadium to cheer on Katie Taylor in her thrilling second battle against Amanda Serrano, he has no plans to stay for the headline-grabbing main event.

Hearn opened up to about the decision involving Taylor, explaining: "We received a massive offer for Katie. I'm not going to tell her she's not allowed to fight on that card," he said. "Financially it's the biggest purse of her career. I won't be watching the main event. We'll be there defending the belts, and then I'll be off.

"The reality is that 20 years ago when Mike Tyson retired from the sport he was shot, completely finished. It was actually sad to watch then, 20 years ago. I'm in awe of him - he's one of my favourite ever fighters, one of the greatest of all time - but he's a 58-year-old man. You only need to speak to him and look at him to know this guy should not be in a ring again."

Despite initially expressing some admiration for Tyson, boxing promoter Eddie Hearn had second thoughts after the first meeting was cancelled, suggesting that perhaps the fight wasn't a wise choice and they should have reconsidered scheduling another date. In a video call with reporters before the fight, 'Iron Mike' responded to Hearn's remarks, saying: "Well, that's Eddie's opinion, and that's all I can say"

The 58 year old boxing icon then quickly turned his focus to the upcoming heavyweight clash in Texas, sharing his enthusiasm and confidence despite his age. "I'm doing well. I'm just looking forward to the fight. Really looking forward to it", Tyson asserted.

"When you think about it, regardless of me being how old I am, this guy only has 10 fights. If I see this fight 10% of what I was, he only has 10 fights. He couldn't match that. And that's being sincere. If I'm 10%, he can't match it."

While 'Iron Mike' is expected to receive a significant sum for his next bout, he insists that money is not the driving force behind his return to the ring. "This money from this fight is not going to change my lifestyle any," he declared.

Tyson emphasised that his quality of life won't be altered by the fight's earnings: "You know, I could use a buck like everyone else, but this is not for financial reasons. My life is not going to change, not one percentage after this fight. We will always be able to live this way. And I'm just doing it because I want to test myself."

The much-anticipated boxing match between the two stars is set to occur on Friday, November 15 at the ATandT Stadium in Arlington, Texas, with a potential audience of up to 90,000 spectators. Tyson hasn't participated in a professional bout since his defeat to Kevin McBride in 2005.

However, he did return to the ring four years ago for an exhibition match against Roy Jones Jr.