"I don't know if I'm afraid of death" - Mike Tyson opens up on past battles ahead of Jake Paul fight
Mike Tyson recently opened up about his past battles as he prepares to return to the ring for a clash against Jake Paul. 'Iron' has been open about his past issues in his personal life and how he dealt with them, which has showcased another side of him.
'Iron's' bout against 'The Problem Child' is scheduled to take place at AT&T Stadium next Friday and will be streaming live on Netflix. The former heavyweight boxing champion reflected on dealing with fame at a young age and noted that overcoming his issues and having a different outlook on life has resulted in him not fearing death.
During his appearance on Andre Ward's The Art of Ward, the 58-year-old discussed his past bouts against the likes of Michael Spinks and Buster Douglas and how he embraced his fear as an ally. Tyson noted that being famous was eye-opening to how his closest friends changed and mentioned that his outlook on life allows him to live life to the fullest:
"[Success and being in the limelight] doesn't come easy. Like I said, it prepares us for our expiration date. All this stuff is preparing us for our expiration date. When we die, we died because we know we had truly lived, that's a good time to die. You know, I don't know if I'm afraid of death but I don't cling to life. We all know we have to go but till that moment comes, we have to do a lot of things." [4:00]
Check out Mike Tyson's comments below:
Mike Tyson opens up about the importance of embracing fear
In addition to discussing his outlook on life, Mike Tyson opened up about the importance of embracing fear throughout his career.
During the aforementioned clip, 'Iron' disclosed that fighters shouldn't avoid their fears when reflecting on his fight against Michael Spinks. Tyson mentioned that he channeled his fears and embraced them when he competed and noted that it helped him win his fights:
"Listen, it's how you handle fear. If you don't consider fear a friend then you're definitely gonna lose. It's going to beat you. You have to accept feeling fear and you have to embrace it and it becomes your friend, it helps you win instead of helping you demise yourself." [1:37]
Check out the full interview with Mike Tyson below: