It was technically billed as a professional boxing fight, but Mike Tyson and Jake Paul failed to deliver the excitement and entertainment fans had been clamouring for in Texas.
Boos rang out from the 70,000-strong crowd at AT&T Stadium when the bout – consisting of eight rounds lasting two minutes each – was brought to an underwhelming close. While Paul looked every bit the novice boxer, his pace and endurance was too much for Tyson.
The judges’ awarded a unanimous victory in Paul’s favour, with the 27-year-old’s scorecards of 80-72, 79-73 and 79-73 showing a comfortable victory for the Cleveland native. But it didn’t represent just how disappointing the fight was as a spectacle for the millions tuned in.
While Tyson’s courage in taking on a fighter 31 years younger than him has to be admired, it told a sad story as a sporting contest – and the statistics from the bout are undeniable.
‘Iron Mike’, making his first competitive appearance since 2005, simply ran out of gas within the first few minutes of the eight-round contest as he failed to hit his mark with his shots.
In the entire 16 minutes of action in Texas, the former undisputed heavyweight world champion landed only 18 punches – averaging just 2.25 successful hits per round.
In total, he only attempted 97, giving him a punch accuracy of just 18 per cent in total.
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