Mike Tyson proved no match for Jake Paul a man 31 years his junior in their deeply underwhelming showdown on Friday, and the stats lay bare just how tough a night it was for the former heavyweight king.
Tyson was competing in his first sanctioned bout in two decades, facing influencer-turned-boxer Jake Paul at AT&T Stadium in Dallas. As widely predicted, the much-hyped fight was not a fair contest, with many just relieved that Tyson escaped without taking serious damage.
These two men had no business being in the same ring together, and that soon became apparent after the opening bell. A burst of energy from Tyson in the first round gave the illusion he could compete with a man in his athletic prime.
But the 58-year-old soon faded and was unable to land anything of significance on Paul, who cruised to a unanimous decision victory. In the aftermath of the fight, Compubox published stats that tell the whole story.
Tyson landed just 18 of the 97 punches he threw, with a success rate of 18.6 per cent. Paul was the busier and more accurate, landing 78 of 278 shots at a rate of 28.1 per cent.
Tellingly, there were two rounds the fourth and sixth when Tyson failed to connect with a single shot. In the last of the eight two-minute rounds, he threw just six punches and connected with only one.
It was an easy night’s work for Paul, who will gleefully add Tyson’s name to his manicured record padded with wins over MMA fighters. The YouTuber faced very little output from Tyson, and he had no trouble landing power shots, connecting with 47 of the 99 he threw.
Despite tasting defeat, Tyson was pleased with his performance. “I am happy,” he said. “I knew he was a good fighter. I knew he was prepared. I didn’t prove nothing to anybody, only to myself. I am just happy with what I can do.”
Paul, who called out Mexican superstar Canelo Alvarez after the win, added: “Mike Tyson, it’s such an honor. Let’s give it up for Mike, the greatest to ever do it.
“We wouldn’t be here without him today with him, this man is an icon. It’s just an honor to be able to fight him. It was a really tough fight. I expected it to be. He was exactly what I thought. One of the greatest to ever do it. An icon. I was trying to hurt him a little bit. I was scared he was going to hurt me. I did my best.”
