Michael Jai White draws from "countless hours of choreography" experience to break down viral clip of Mike Tyson pulling back on Jake Paul
The very last Mike Tyson professional fight ever may be his unanimous decision loss to Jake Paul. However, as observed by many, including Michael Jai White, the bout featured a moment that seemed to show a reluctant Tyson pulling his punches in a specific sequence where he could have landed big.
This led to accusations of fight-fixing from many in the combat sports world. White, however, offered a more measured take in his latest sitdown with VLADTV. As both an actor and martial artist tasked with playing 'Iron Mike' in the 'Tyson' biographical film, White is more than familiar with the former's move-set.
Moreover, White is also familiar with actual fighting, having sparred several high-level MMA fighters and boxers. When asked about the aforementioned sequence where Tyson appeared to hold back on a punch, he dismissed, as have others, any notion of a predetermined outcome.
"As a person who's done countless hours of choreography and fight scene stuff, it's very difficult. There are hundreds of punches thrown. So, you know, somebody could react to the wrong punch. Combined. I remembered seeing something where, and of course it's a neophyte who doesn't know anything about fighting, I saw some clip where Tyson was starting a punch and abandoned it, but as soon as he did this, Jake was already kind of moving."
White goes on to explain that had Tyson fully committed to the punch, he wouldn't have scored a patented knockout. Instead, he would have opened himself up to a counter.
"So, Tyson abandoned the punch and they claim that that was, 'Oh, he could have landed a knockout blow.' No, no. He saw that he was already moving. So, if the guy's already moving and I continue with that punch, and they gonna hit him, he's gonna hit me back."
Check out Michael Jai White's dismissal of Mike Tyson's fight with Jake Paul being fixed (0:25):
Ultimately, Tyson lost the bout via unanimous decision and ought to avoid another professional boxing bout.
Michael Jai White and Mike Tyson have known each other for years
Michael Jai White and Mike Tyson are both icons of the 90s decade. The former is a martial artist who parlayed his experience and athleticism into an acting career. Meanwhile, Tyson became the most feared boxer in the world at the time. The two even crossed paths many years ago, snapping a backstage picture.
White, as previously mentioned, played Tyson in a biographical movie released in 1995, when it was aired on HBO.