Russell Crowe tells Joe Rogan he was "terrified" of Mike Tyson but is still concerned about Jake Paul fight
American actor Russell Crowe recently gave his take on the upcoming Mike Tyson vs. Jake Paul fight during a conversation with Joe Rogan. Crowe stated that he was afraid of Tyson as a fighter.
The Paul vs. Tyson fight has sparked heated debate and discussion since its official announcement earlier this year. The original plan for Paul was to face Tyson in a heavyweight bout on July 20. However, the former undisputed heavyweight champion had an ulcer flare-up, which forced him to withdraw from the contest.
On the same day that Paul was supposed to fight Tyson, he instead went on to face former UFC fighter and BKFC star Mike Perry. The YouTuber-turned-boxer defeated Perry via knockout in the sixth round. His bout against the boxing legend has now been postponed to Nov. 15 and will be live-streamed on Netflix.
During a recent episode of The Joe Rogan Experience, Rogan spoke to Crowe and discussed Tyson's upcoming fight with Paul. The UFC commentator stated that 'Iron Mike' is still dangerous as a fighter despite his old age.
''58-year-old Mike Tyson is not 50-year-old Mike Jones that lives down the street, it’s a different kind of human being. He can still knock your head into another dimension if he can catch you.''
Russell, who portrayed heavyweight boxer James J. Braddock in the Oscar-nominated film 'Cinderella Man,' expressed his concerns about Tyson competing at this point in his life, saying:
''I was terrified of him as a boxer. He was terrifying. Even when I met him backstage at a stadium one time at a fight, I was like ‘I’m still terrified of you'...What bothers me with this whole thing is that he’s got to kind of slide back into that warrior and I’m just not sure that he needed to do it.'' [H/t: Bloody Elbow]
Francis Ngannou believes Mike Tyson will defeat Jake Paul
The Jake Paul vs. Mike Tyson fight has been criticized by fans and analysts due to their 30-year-plus age difference, giving Paul an unfair edge over the boxing legend.
However, former UFC heavyweight champion Francis Ngannou, who trained with Tyson for his boxing bout against Tyson Fury, claimed that the 58-year-old still has the ability to defeat Paul.
At the PFL media day, ahead of his fight against Renan Ferreira, Ngannou stated:
''I think Tyson will still beat his a** up. He’s definitely not as [good as] he was when he was young but when he moves around you and shows you something, you’re like, ‘What the hell is this?’'' [H/t: Bloody Elbow]