Iron Mike had a very good reason for turning down $5 million for their long-awaited fight
While the Paul vs Tyson fight played out a little differently than most people expected, the aftermath has been particularly interesting.
The long-awaited bout was live-streamed by Netflix across the globe, with hundreds of thousands of people tuning into what was going on at the AT&T Stadium in Arlington, Texas.
There were also around 70,000 people sitting at the location too, eagerly waiting to see what would happen.
However, it all ended with Jake Paul winning in a unanimous decision against Iron Mike.
Having played eight two-minute rounds instead of the usual three-minute 12 rounds, the score was obviously in Paul’s favor.
In the end, it was scored 80-72, 79-73 and 79-73.
Now, Paul has been pretty vocal about just how much he’d take home if he won, but we’ve also been privy to 58-year-old Mike Tyson‘s purse amount.
Mike Tyson and Jake Paul battled it out in Texas (Al Bello / Staff / Getty Images)
However, there was actually an incentive for him to go the whole way, regardless of the outcome, which could have increased his purse just that little more.
Curiously, the former heavyweight champion turned it down.
Why?
A video resurfaced on social media which shows Paul playing with stacks of cash on his belly, while calling out ‘Iron Mike’ in a taunting tone.
He said to the camera: “Mikey, Mikey, if you can last more than four rounds with me, I’ll give you an extra $5 million. But, if you don’t then you have to get a tattoo that says ‘I love Jake Paul’. Deal or no deal?”
It’s a nice amount of cash for most, but this is Tyson we’re talking about.
Obviously, he’s been around the block a few times and knows his worth, so he refused his $5 million on the spot.
Speaking to USA Today, he said: “He should offer more.”
Tyson knows his worth (Al Bello / Staff / Getty Images)
When asked how much he’d accept the offer for, Tyson then replied: “Tell him probably about 20 [million dollars].”
Damn, that’s a lot.
But again, this is Tyson.
It’s been rumored that the winner was due to get tens of millions of dollars, meaning that Paul is good to pay him his 20.
Speaking at a press conference in August, Paul said: “I’m here to make $40 million and knock out a legend.”
Halving that amount and giving it to Tyson like he wanted would be fine (right, Paul?).
Since Tyson is rumoured to have a purse of $20 million, giving him another $20 to at least make it to more than four rounds would give him a tasty reward.
The fight was one for the ages, with so many people tuning in to find out who would be the one true champion.
But hile the hall-of-famer boasted an impressive professional boxing record with 50 wins, 44 knockouts, and six losses, his counterpart now has 10 wins, seven knockouts, and one loss.
The 31-year age gap between the two competitors has been getting a lot of traction, with many thinking it just wasn’t fair on Tyson.
As it wasn’t classified as an exhibition fight, this meant that Tyson recorded another loss on his record (seven losses), while Paul now has 11 wins.
