Mike Tyson shied away from pummelling Jake Paul in their Netflix fight because he didn't want to "embarrass" the social media star, and Tyson's "heart was not in it" to bring out the "animalistic" side of his personality to land heavy punches against Paul.
That insight comes from Tyson's long term friend and actor entrepreneur Richie Palmer, who claims that seeing the ex champ train on bags proved to him that his physical punch power was strong. Palmer, who dedicated a statue to pal Mike at his Vegas Mulberry Bush pizza store, also reflected on how Paul was a threat to the New Yorker brawler despite his lack of experience. Palmer doubts Tyson will return to the ring again, but thinks he'll likely work with Netflix in the future as a commentator. Speaking exclusively at the premiere of Chuck Zito: An American Story, Palmer gave his insight on his friend of over thirty years.
"Mike was at the point where he didn't want to do any damage to the kid, because that's how Mike is. I thought he'd probably want to just give him a good match, but I don't think he'd want to hand this kid his ass and embarrass him. He's up and coming. Mike was being respectful. I don't think we saw an animal inside him like when he was younger, but I've watched him hit the bag and my God, when he hits."
Tyson and Paul ignited the interest for Netflix with their huge marketing campaign and exciting weigh in slap attack. Palmer explained: "I didn't think his heart was into it -not that it was a setup or anything. I just thought his heart wasn't into it. I mean, they really hyped it up. They had all this animalistic confrontation and the pre-fight interviews, so everybody expected a battle.
"That was the biggest thing because they amped it up as It was going to be one hell of a badass fight. And then it was just like a little dance, a little bit this and that. And you could see Mike was not in the best endurance level. He had some power, but then he was fading after a while. But he's a great guy and he's got a good heart. He's a very talented man, and I just hope he stays out of the ring now."
Palmer was worried for his friend being knocked out by Paul. - 28 years his junior. "I was concerned because even though Mike is very powerful as you age, your endurance isn't the same as when you are 20 years old." He noted Tyson was right to be wary of Paul, as icons like George Foreman or Muhammed Ali 'could be knocked out with the right punch.' He continued: "Now Jake Paul can hit. Does he have the best style? No. But if he caught Mike at the right angle and Mike was a little bit tired, he could hurt him."
He continued: "Tyson could never match Paul simply because of their age difference. No matter how hard you train, how well he eats, you're not going to have the same endurance, power and strength as a man 25 years old." Palmer believes Tyson will not fight again, but will likely become part of Netflix's fight team "Why take a chance? Enjoy life.
"You've done everything you could ever imagine in the sport of boxing. Take the money, spend time with your family. Because preparing for the fight, it's not fun. For someone that is at an older age, your whole life is upside down. All those months of training and dieting and going to the gym and being sore all the time, that's not fun. I'd say enjoy the money he made...like over $20 million. Enjoy it."
Image:
Getty Images for Netflix A 2024)Palmer praised his "brilliant businessman" pal for his 'brilliant move,' saying: "I understand why he took the fight and it was entertaining. And look, Netflix got the viewers, now they're showing all these sports events. So it helped Netflix in a big way. So I'm sure they're going to somehow still work with him in some capacity; maybe him being a commentator or something because the one man show he did was fantastic.
"But I'm sure he'll come up with something he enjoys being in the limelight. He's a really wonderful human being, great entertainer, great dad. He takes care of his family and friends." The boxing legend, 58, stated he felt 'depressed a little bit' following his defeat to Paul.
Palmer says that social media backlash was to blame for that comment, saying: "He was reading the comments and they thought it was a setup. He thought he hurt his loyal fans and his intentions weren't to do that. But again, people have to realize they can be hurtful. You get these cyber bullies and they were saying hurtful things about Mike it was terrible. He's got so much to look forward to. I think this will be it for him, for these fights.
"I think he realizes after that, what am I doing? You have that aha moment. I need to move on from this, but I did it. I made great money for my family, but let's go to the next chapter."
-1725938910-q80.webp "Vikings’ Kevin O’Connell Addresses Team Captain’s Week 1 Blunder")
