By: Sean Crose
Just weeks away from his scheduled July 20th fight with Jake Paul, Mike Tyson suffered a medical emergency while on a flight to Los Angeles from Miami. In Touch Weekly quotes a source as saying ” Mike had some kind of medical emergency on the plane and paramedics boarded (after landing).” The situation was serious enough that, “before the paramedics arrived the flight issued an announcement asking for a doctor — the message even came on everyone’s screens.” Team Tyson has subsequently informed In Touch magazine that the 57 year old Tyson “is doing great” and that “he became nauseous and dizzy due to an ulcer flare up 30 minutes before landing. He is appreciative to the medical staff that were there to help him.”
While Tyson may indeed be okay, the incident does not – or at least should not – bode well for the scheduled fight with Paul. Tyson, after all, would enter the ring closer to sixty than to fifty. Furthermore, Paul is in his 20s. Tyson’s heyday was decades ago. It’s been ages since the man’s prime. Indeed, Tyson’s last fight was about 20 years back, when he lost to the largely unknown Kevin McBride in 2005.
To put things in perspective – Tyson first won a heavyweight title back in 1986. That’s before a large percentage of fight fans were even born. He became the undisputed and lineal king of the heavyweight division in 1988, and got knocked out by James Douglas in 1990. And, as if all that wasn’t telling enough, Tyson’s infamous ear-chomping rematch against Evander Holyfield went down in 1997 – over 25 years ago. Tyson, simply put, has been dangerously removed from his best days for some time. Even if the man did step into the ring and knock out Paul, he might still be putting his well being at serious risk in the process.
Boxing is a dangerous spot, one that occasionally and tragically kills people. It’s up to the governmental, professional, and broadcast powerhouses behind the scenes to step up and do the right thing. No fighter worth his or her weight in salt is going to step away from a fight that’s already been made unless there’s a tragedy or unless he or she is told to by a professional. Fighters, after all, are built to fight. That isn’t the case with most people, however. Those of us who love this sport would be well advised to step up and speak out when things become unreasonably dangerous.
The Mike Tyson-Jake Paul match shouldn’t be allowed to happen.