Mike Tyson On Returning For Real Fight After Roy Jones Jr Draw

KEY POINTS

Following a shocking draw with Roy Jones Jr., Mike Tyson has revealed his thoughts about a potential professional fight.

After eight two-minute rounds of boxing, Tyson and Jones’ epic exhibition match ended in a draw Saturday. During a post-match interview with Jim Gray, Tyson was asked if he would want to do it again. “Iron Mike” confirmed that he does and even emphasized that Jones should be in the card as well, hinting that he will face a different opponent.

“Absolutely! [Jones] He’ll be in the card as well,” Tyson replied.

When asked about considering a professional fight against an active fighter should he manage to get a license, Tyson said this is not in his plans, pointing out that he wants to help people using the sport rather than compete professionally at this point.

“No, this is bigger than championships,” the 54-year-old explained. “We’re humanitarians, we’re helping people. That’s bigger. And I’m into that now.”

Roy Jones Jr. reacts after receiving a split draw against Mike Tyson during Mike Tyson vs Roy Jones Jr. presented by Triller at Staples Center. Photo: Getty Images | Joe Scarnici

Jones, on the other hand, appeared reluctant to make a decision despite Tyson urging him to “do this again.” According to Superman, he would like to have a talk with his family first before revealing his future plans.

“I’ll go talk to my family and see how they feel about it all and see if they like what they saw, then if they wanna do it again, we’ll come back and do it again,” Jones said.

A classic Tyson came out strong in the early going, throwing his signature body shot and uppercut combination on Jones. However, the 54-year-old was unable to land a clean shot until the closing seconds of Round 5.

Jones managed to bounce back in Round 6, connecting with a combination of swift jabs. The former multi-division champ escaped his opponent’s power punches all the way through the final round, where Tyson appeared to be going for a kick out of frustration.

Many believe that Tyson vs. Jones wouldn’t be a real fight considering their age and the fact that it was an exhibition match. However, even the ringside commentators, including UFC middleweight champ Israel Adesanya, were convinced that both boxing icons competed at the highest level the entire fight.

“I loved it,” Adesanya said of Tyson and Jones after the final round. “I love the fact that they were able to stay competitive the whole way.”

“Right after a fight, whether win or lose, you just have to say like ‘yes, we did that!’ and like I’ve said hats off to these two gentlemen,” he added.