Mike Tyson knows a thing or two about fear.
For year, he instilled a feeling of dread in his opponents as he cut a swathe through the heavyweight division in the 1980s.
Widely regarded as one of the most intimidating heavyweights of all time alongside the likes of Sonny Liston and George Foreman, the former undisputed world champion has admitted that he too suffers from nerves before a fight.
Even one against YouTuber turned boxer Jake Paul, who he will face at AT&T Stadium in Arlington, Texas on July 20.
By the time they step in the ring, Tyson will be 58 and Paul will be 27.
“Anything I’m afraid of, I confront it,” Tyson said on Tuesday in an interview on Fox News with Sean Hannity. “And that’s my personality.
“Like right now, I’m scared to death. But as the fight gets closer, the less nervous I become because it’s reality. And in reality, I’m invincible.”
Tyson, who has compiled a record of 50-6 (44) since turning pro almost 40 years ago, elaborated on his philosophy of fear: “I always believed that adversity or nervousness, it liked pretty much catapulted me into success. If I didn’t have these feelings, I wouldn’t go into this fight.
“I have to have these feelings to fight. Without them I would never go in the ring.”
Since making his pro debut four years ago, Paul 9-1 (6) has feasted on washed-up ex-mixed martial arts fighters and debutants, with five of his opponents entering the ring against him for their first pro bout.
But Tyson insists he has seen improvement in Paul as he has stepped up his level of opposition.
“That’s not the guy I’m going to be fighting,” Tyson told Hannity. “This guy is going to come and try to hurt me, which I’m accustomed to. And he’s going to be greatly mistaken.”
Critics have question why a man pushing 60 would want to fight the tough but limited Paul, who has parlayed his social media success into a lucrative boxing career.
“I’m 58 and what? I’m getting billions of views from just talking to somebody from fighting.” Tyson said to Reuters.
“Everybody, even most of the athletes, they’re jealous. That’s whack. ‘He’s 58, he’s 57.’ I say in your prime, you couldn’t draw a million people, man. What are you talking? You couldn’t sell out an arena. Who, at 58, could sell out an 80,000-seat arena?”
Tyson continued: “Why you think he wants to fight me and not anybody else? Everybody wants to fight him. All the boxers want to fight him.
“But if he fought them, the only people that will come are the people that like him. The other guys, their parents might not even come watch them. That’s just keeping it real.
“They’re too boring for their children to watch. It’s like watching grass grow.”
