Jorge Masivdal backs Jake Paul to defeat Mike Tyson.
Paul and Tyson will step into the ring together tonight in Texas after months of build-up, with everyone in the combat sports world having an opinion on the big fight.
On one side of the ring is social media star-turned-boxer Paul, who at 27 has become one of the sport's biggest names by mostly fighting crossover athletes from different disciplines. On the other side is Tyson, who held the undisputed world heavyweight championship in the 1980s and was the most feared fighter on the planet during his prime years.
However, those prime years are well behind Tyson, and former UFC "BMF" champion Masvidal believes it's an obstacle that will prove to be too much to overcome for "Iron Mike."
"What kind of 58-year-old man can keep up with someone in their 20s when they're doing a sprint? It's tough in a regular foot race, it's tough on the cardio side," Masvidal told SportsBookReview. "I know he's not fighting a killer like Evander Holyfield, but Jake is in his prime, all this guy does is eat, sleep and box – he trains his a— off."
Masvidal further explained that Paul's dedication to the sport, when combined with the age advantage, should give the "Problem Child" a big leg up in tonight's bout. Additionally, he said the size of the gloves worn by the combatants could become a deciding factor as it would dull some of the punches thrown by both men.
"I know it looks like he's always partying and s—t, but this guy (Paul) is training Monday through Saturday, he's running his miles, he's hitting the bag and I just don't know what kind of physical condition Mike is going to be in," Masvidal said. "I know he's got his injuries, can he really pull it off at [nearly] 60 years old? I feel like Jake's gonna take the first two rounds off, just get on his bike and move around, wear Tyson out.
"He'll get tired. He will probably want to take Mike into the later rounds and then it's going to be a problem. At the same time I don't think Jake is a good enough boxer to keep Mike off.
"But I'm leaning towards Jake by decision. It's 14oz gloves so that favors Jake, so he should be able to take a shot better. The longer it goes the better it is for Jake, but can he get out of those first two rounds. Jake wins because of the overall age, conditioning, shape, it's going to make a big difference."
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