EDDIE HEARN has claimed he will leave before Mike Tyson’s clash with Jake Paul on November 15.
Former world heavyweight champion Tyson, 58, has not had a professional bout since 2005 and was forced to delay the clash with Paul by four months due to health issues.
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Boxing promoter Hearn, 45, will be in attendance at the event in Texas to support Irish icon Katie Taylor as she rematches Amanda Serrano.
But he has admitted he will not stick around for the main event as an old Tyson faces off against YouTuber Paul, 27, who has won 10 of his 11 pro fights.
Speaking to BBC Sport, Hearn said: “The reality is that 20 years ago when Mike Tyson retired from the sport he was shot, completely finished.
“It was actually sad to watch then, 20 years ago.”
He went on to add: “I’m in awe of him – he’s one of my favourite ever fighters, one of the greatest of all time – but he’s a 58-year-old man.
“You only need to speak to him and look at him to know this guy should not be in a ring again.”
Tyson will take on Paul at the AT&T Stadium nearly FOUR DECADES after he made history by becoming the youngest world heavyweight champion at the age of 20 back in 1986.
He made his return to the ring after 15 years away in 2020 when he competed in an exhibition against Roy Jones Jr.
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Jake Paul vs Mike Tyson’s lifestyles compared
ONE is a notorious YouTuber-turned-boxer who has taken the sport by storm.
The other terrorised all in the ring in the 1980s and 1990s, famously biting the ear off an opponent in one fight.
Iron Mike has rebuilt his life after squandering a £300m fortune with a cannabis empire, and is a huge advocate of the drug.
And as Paul has continued to rise up the ranks, he has splashed the cash on a fleet of amazing cars.
Whereas Tyson had more money than sense until a £15m debt saw him part with his cherished car collection.
Paul now lives in a plush mansion worth £13m in Puerto Rico, after escaping his hectic life in LA.
But these days, Tyson lounges in his Vegas property he paid £2.5m for with wife Lakiha, who he married in 2009.
Paul is not yet married but is smitten with his speed skater girlfriend Jutta Leerdam.
She will be by his side when her man puts his 9-1 boxing record on the line against two-time heavyweight champ Tyson on July 20.
Tyson recently sent a warning to Paul, telling Jimmy Kimmel: “I started Jake Paul off. My fight with Roy Jones Jr, I allowed him to fight on the card.
“So I’ve decided that I started him, and now I’m going to finish him. I liked [Jones Jr] a lot, I like [Paul], but in this particular fight he has to go.”
Meanwhile, Hearn is suing Paul for defamation for the sum of $100million.
A court date has been set for October 16 after a motion to have the £75m case thrown out was rejected by a New York judge.
Mike Tyson’s controversial comeback
Mike Tyson is BACK!
Yes, boxing’s youngest heavyweight champ of all time – just 20 when he achieved the feat – is preparing to lace them up again.
He faces YouTuber-turned-boxer Jake Paul on July 20 in Texas.
The controversial clash – set for the 80,000-seat AT&T Stadium in Dallas – has been scrutinised over the 30-year age gap.
Tyson will be 58 by the time the fight for the ages comes around and nearly 20 years removed from his last professional contest.
He was last seen in the ring in November 2020 for an exhibition with fellow legend Roy Jones Jr, which ended a draw after eight rounds.
Paul is meanwhile 9-1 in the ring, losing only to Tommy Fury in 2023, and has won three times since.
His fight with Tyson will also be a landmark first on Netflix, with over 250MILLION subscribers able to watch the bout.