It’s interesting that, while plenty of pundits have taken offense at the September 12 exhibition fight between legends Mike Tyson and Roy Jones Jr (see veteran scribe Colin Hart’s recent article in The Sun, in which Hart says The California Commission should be ashamed of themselves for allowing the bout to take place) – fellow fighters have a far more positive view of the bout.
Anthony Joshua, for example, hopes the fight does well and adds interest to the heavyweight division. Bernard Hopkins has gone as far as to say Tyson could even become world champ again.
While Floyd Mayweather Jr has said he will certainly watch the fight next month. Is it a case of fighters supporting their own, knowing that, one day, they will be just like Tyson and Jones Jr – unable to hang up the gloves and find something else to do? Maybe.
David Haye is another fighter who has a genuine interest in Tyson-Jones Jr. Speaking with SPORTbible, Haye said he feels Jones Jr could, with his timing, speed, and agility, “pull away with it,” if Jones “doesn’t get caught with one of Tyson’s bombs in the first two rounds,” that is.
Haye, like many people, feels Tyson will be explosive for a short time but may then fade. “How many explosions has Mike Tyson got in him at 54?” Haye said. “I don’t know.
If he has ten big, explosive bursts, I’d be surprised – because it takes so much energy for him to throw those amazing combinations. But if in a six-punch combo, one or two lands on the chin, that could end it.”
Haye says Tyson, the “thicker set” fighter, if not the taller fighter, will win if the fight turns into a slugfest, and this exactly what may happen. Can Jones Jr box and stay away from Tyson? How will Jones Jr’s chin hold up if it does get tagged?
But while a good number of fellow fighters are genuinely intrigued by the September 12 fight (P-P-V price-tag $49.99), those naysayers are shouting louder than they are. God help us and the great sport of boxing if Tyson or (more likely) Jones Jr gets hurt next month.