Jake Paul’s manager Nakisa Bidarian has responded to critics of ‘The Problem Child’s’ controversial clash with Mike Tyson.
Several members of the boxing fraternity have raised concerns for Tyson’s health as he gears up to face a man 31 years his junior on November 15.
Tyson will be 58 by the time he steps between the ropes while Paul is in his athletic prime at 27.
Those fears were only exacerbated when organisers were forced to postpone the initially proposed July 20 fight date by four months after ‘Iron Mike’ suffered an ulcer flare-up on a flight to Los Angeles.
His representatives claimed he had made a full recovery but doctors deemed him medically unfit to compete this summer.
Bidarian insists the fight has every right to take place providing Tyson is given a clean bill of health and compared the situation to Conor McGregor’s injury woes ahead of his long-awaited comeback against Michael Chandler.
“Anyone can get an ulcer and injuries. Look at Conor McGregor he’s 36 years old he’s been rehabbing for 3 years, and the fight gets postponed,” Bidarian told the MMA Hour on Wednesday night.
“Mike Tyson vs Jake Paul makes sense because of the age from my perspective.
“If Mike was in his early 30s given Jake’s experience it wouldn’t make much sense, age is the equalising factor.
“If you look at Mike Tyson at age 27, he was 40-1, Jake Paul is 27 and he’s 9-1.
“Jake Paul has been a professional for four years, Mike Tyson by that point was a professional for 14 years.
“So what makes this fight exciting and what makes it real is that there is a chance that either guy can lose and if you actually talk to the vast majority of the public and you look at the polls we have done everyone thinks that Mike Tyson is going to knock out Jake Paul.
“So I think as long as he has a clean bill of health and he 100 percent will if we move forward with November 15, which we plan to, then of course that fight should happen.”
McGregor has been out of action since breaking his leg against Dustin Poirier in July 2021 and was scheduled to make his long-awaited return against Chandler at UFC 303 on June 29.
However, the bout was called off after McGregor suffered a broken toe in sparring.
It is presently unclear exactly when that will be rescheduled to although the Irishman insists he will be ready by August or September.
Chandler has been pushing hard for the fight to be moved to UFC 306 on September 14 at the Las Vegas Sphere – the event which Saudi Arabia’s Riyadh Season is involved with.
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News Summary:
- Jake Paul’s manager defends Mike Tyson age gap with Conor McGregor comparison
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