By: Sean Crose
With just weeks to go before his scheduled July 20 fight with Jake Paul, Mike Tyson suffered a medical emergency while on a flight to Los Angeles from Miami. Contact weekly “Mike had several medical emergencies on the plane and paramedics boarded the plane (after landing),” a source was quoted as saying. The situation was so serious that “before medical staff arrived, the flight made an announcement asking for a doctor – the announcement even appeared on everyone’s screen.” Team Tyson later announced Contact magazine that the 57-year-old Tyson “is doing well” and that “he was nauseous and dizzy from an ulcer that flared up 30 minutes before landing. He was very grateful to the medical staff who were there to help him.”
While Tyson may actually be fine, the incident doesn’t — or at least shouldn’t — bode well for the scheduled fight with Paul. After all, Tyson would enter the ring closer to sixty than fifty. Furthermore, Paul is in his 20s. Tyson’s heyday was decades ago. It’s been a long time since this man’s peak. Indeed, Tyson’s last fight was about 20 years ago, when he lost to Kevin McBride in 2005.
To put things into perspective – Tyson first won a heavyweight title in 1986. That was before a large following of wrestling fans was born. He became the undisputed and undisputed king of the heavyweight division in 1988, and was knocked out by James Douglas in 1990. And, as if all that weren’t enough, the infamous choking rematch Tyson’s relationship with Evander Holyfield ended in 1997 – more than 25 years ago. Simply put, Tyson has been dangerously removed from his best days for some time. Even if that man entered the ring and knocked out Paul, he could still put his health in serious danger in the process.
Boxing is a dangerous place, sometimes tragically deadly. Behind the scenes it is up to the powerful government agencies, experts and media to step up and do the right thing. No warrior worth his or her weight would walk away from a battle that had taken place unless there was a tragedy or unless he or she was called upon by an expert. After all, fighters are born to fight. However, that is not the case for most people. Those of us who love this sport should stand up and speak up when things get unreasonably dangerous.
The Mike Tyson-Jake Paul fight was not allowed to happen.
