Jake Paul's Officially Responds To Accusations Fight Was 'Rigged'

11/25/2024 10:50 AM

Jake Paul's company, MVP Productions, has officially responded to accusations that his fight against Mike Tyson was "rigged."

The 27-year-old Paul defeated Tyson, 58, with relative ease. The eight-round fight went the distance, but Paul never appeared to be in any serious danger of losing. He landed nearly five times as many punches as Tyson - 78 to 18 - and seemed to be in complete control from start to finish. The ease with which the fight was won has led some to believe that it was "rigged" from the start.

"That fight was a lie," former NFL star Michael Irvin said, via the New York Post. "They had no intentions to really strap it on. If you look through that, I didn't see one patented uppercut by Mike Tyson. What did Mike Tyson win on? Uppercut.

"Then I heard some people talking about they couldn't put that in the contract. He couldn't body and then uppercut. Like, how can you put that in a fight contract? You got all these people out here, and he couldn't body him and do that patented uppercut. Mike Tyson is not Mike Tyson anyway, and now you're taking away Mike Tyson's best gift, which was that uppercut. Man, that's a big lie to me. That's like making me play a game without running a slant route in the deep end or the deep out. You do what you do best. If they take that away, you ain't that dude anymore, and they took that away."

Paul's company, though, is clapping back.

Paul's company, MVP Productions, strongly denied that the fight was rigged, saying it would be a federal crime. The fight was officially sanctioned by Texas Department of Licensing and Regulations.

"Both fighters in good faith performed to the best of their abilities with the goal of winning the fight. There were absolutely no restrictions – contractual or otherwise – around either fighter," the statement from Paul's company read. "Each boxer was able to use his full arsenal to win the fight. Any agreement to the contrary would violate TDLR boxing rules."

Paul's manager, MVP co-founder Nakisa Bidarian, also responded to the accusations.

"This is not the first time Jake Paul has faced unfounded skepticism or outright disbelief as a professional athlete, and frankly, the claim that his bout must have been rigged is just the latest backhanded compliment to come his way," he said.

"From day one in this sport, people have doubted his abilities -- unable to reconcile how someone with his background has accomplished so much in such a short time. Jake has not only proven himself repeatedly, but he has continuously set historic records that speak for themselves."

While it might not have been rigged, it was a sham. Anyone who thought a 58-year-old Mike Tyson could compete with a 27-year-old boxer - any 27-year-old boxer - is a fool.