UFC star points out the exact "hurdle" Mike Tyson could not overcome against Jake Paul despite impressive pad sessions in training
A UFC fighter recently gave his take on Mike Tyson's loss against Jake Paul, despite Tyson's impressive preparation for the bout. The individual stressed the boxing legend's inability to come within striking range and land significant strikes, among other reasons, led to his defeat.
Tyson's highly anticipated heavyweight boxing match against Paul took place this past Friday at the AT&T Stadium in Arlington, Texas. The contest lasted eight rounds and in the end, the YouTuber turned boxer got his hand raised via unanimous decision.
Point Blank News recently took to X and highlighted Tyson's sparring session ahead of the Paul fight, where he appeared to be in excellent shape, striking the pads with precise accuracy and power. They questioned whether the Paul vs. Tyson battle was fixed, citing the 58-year-old's performance throughout the fight.
In response, UFC bantamweight fighter Aiemann Zahabi asserted that Tyson couldn't get in range to land effective strikes, writing:
''The most important thing to pick up on looking back at Tyson’s pad sessions is that the pad holder is within range when Tyson is unleashing his heavy strikes. The hurdle Tyson couldn’t over come in the fight was getting in range consistently to land significant strikes repeatedly.''
In response to a fan who brought up Tyson's prime, when he would close the distance to deliver his strong blows, Zahabi wrote:
''Ya exactly. The problem yesterday was his legs failed him. His mobility, agility and endurance were too limited to score big. Obviously I totally understand why given his age, he even hand a knee brace in one of his legs. Doesn’t change the fact that he is one of the greatest boxers of all time.''
In another response to a fan, Zahabi mentioned Tyson's declining lower body strength due to old age, writing:
''Great point, I don’t know why his lower would be more in impaired than his upper body. I wonder if it’s because after a certain age all we do with our legs is sit, walk and lay down. As opposed to our upper body they continue to do a wider range of functions.''
Dana White expresses his admiration for Mike Tyson
Dana White, who has previously expressed disapproval of the Jake Paul vs. Mike Tyson matchup, recently offered his thoughts on the contest and highlighted Tyson's widespread appeal, which contributed to the event's success.
During the UFC 309 post-fight press conference, White said:
''For Netflix, this thing was brilliant because you knew it was gonna pull a massive number because of Mike Tyson, right? And to be fair to Jake, you're gonna tune in to watch him get knocked out hopefully, right? That's what everyone wants to see.''
Check out Dana White's comments below (via Jedi Goodman's post on X):