Mike Tyson punches Jake Paul during face-off for boxing fight

Mike Tyson landed a playful punch on Jake Paul as the rivals faced off ahead of their boxing fight later this year.

Tyson and Paul were due to clash last month but the boxing legend was forced to pull out when he suffered an ulcer flare-up two months before the first bell. The bout was pushed back until November, with Paul knocking out bare-knuckle boxer Mike Perry after he stepped in to replace Tyson.

Tyson insists he has recovered from his ailment and put his hands on his opponent as they stood nose to nose on the stage after a press conference. The former undisputed heavyweight champion then pushed Paul backward before the YouTube star, who is 30 years his opponent's junior, returned the favor.

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Earlier, Tyson had insisted he would put an end to Paul's foray into boxing. "We've got a YouTuber fighting the greatest fighter who ever lived. He may have been in the ring with people who have the same intentions, but in actuality, no. As soon as I catch this guy it's going to be totally over, he's going to run."

Paul has been criticized for taking on Tyson, who is 58, with the legend not having fought since a bore draw in an exhibition bout with Roy Jones Jr behind closed doors in 2020. Tyson's last professional fight saw him retire on his stool after five rounds against Kevin McBride almost 20 years ago.

Paul has won 10 of his 11 professional fights but most of his wins have come against former MMA stars, including Ben Askren, Tyron Woodley, Anderson Silva, and Nate Diaz. His sole defeat came when he stepped up his caliber of opponent and was outpointed by Tommy Fury last year.

And Paul has promised an equally violent end to the fight, insisting: "This is history; everyone is saying I'm going to get knocked out but what happens when I put this man to sleep? He's saying it's going to be my funeral, he's saying it's going to be my wake, he's going to kill Jake Paul... I respect Mike Tyson but we're not friends anymore, I'm knocking this motherf***er out and we'll see who's dead."