The festive period certainly hasn’t slowed things down in the world of boxing with talk of legendary comebacks, bitter all-British bust-ups and… well, Mike Tyson being Mike Tyson. Here are five of the week’s boxing stories you might have missed this week...
Oscar De La Hoya Ups Ante On Ring Return
Six-weight former world champion Oscar De La Hoya has been talking up a return to the ring for quite a while now, going as far as to name both Floyd Mayweather, Canelo and Gennady Golovkin as potential opponents. Now, in an interview with The Guardian, the 47-year-old says that after watching Mike Tyson and Roy Jones Jr’s exhibition last month that his boxing comeback has become a “serious proposition”.
“What Mike Tyson did was very inspirational,” the Golden Boy promoter said. “He looked great. He looked like the old Mike Tyson, against a fighter who at one point was the best on the planet.”
“For the last maybe six, seven months I’ve been feeling great, my body fat is very low,” he continues. “I’m maybe 10 pounds [from] where I want to be. I just want to make sure that when I start sparring I don’t get injured.”
Mike Tyson Eats Magic Mushrooms On Logan Paul Podcast
Mike Tyson made a spectacular appearance on Logan Paul’s “imPAULsive” podcast this week when he discussed with the YouTuber how psychedelics aided him in his boxing comeback this year, even admitting that he was high during the bout with Jones Jr which was a draw.
About five minutes into the live broadcast Tyson swapped the joint he was smoking (because of course he was), and took a handful of magic mushrooms that he’d brought to the studio, and scoffed them like they were Evander Holyfield’s left ear lobe.
Not finished there, ‘The Baddest Man on the Planet’ went on to berate his host for agreeing to fight 50-0 boxer Floyd Mayweather next February, telling Paul, “Floyd’s going to beat [your] f****** a**. But it’s going to be good! It’s going to be good, [you’re] going to fight back though!”
Eddie Hearn In Talks Over Canelo Vs Billy Joe Saunders In May
Eddie Hearn says he is in talks with Canelo’s trainer Eddy Reyneso over a two-fight deal, which would see the Mexican superstar first take on Avni Yildirim at the start of the year and then lock horns with the seventh British opponent of his professional career, Billy Joe Saunders, in May.
Speaking to The Athletic, Hearn mentioned how close Saunders was to fighting Canelo last summer, only for coronavirus to put it to a halt at the last minute. “We were one day away from the press conference for Canelo against Billy Joe Saunders. The pandemic hit and the fight got cancelled,” Hearn said.
“'Now it's important the momentum continues. He (Saunders) has got to be a pro now, he's got to be ready. We can't waste the opportunity to see how good he is.”
Amir Khan Wants Kell Brook In 2021
Will they? Won’t they? It’s a question that British boxing fans have been asking about Amir Khan and Kell Brook for what has to be the best part of a decade now and with each passing year, people are starting to care less and less.
Could 2021 be the year we finally see the two bitter domestic rivals finally step in the ring with one another? According to Khan, maybe. Speaking to the Khaleej Times, the Bolton-fighter said, "Brook, who's always been running his mouth, I think it is about time now to put him in his place, shut him up for good."
We’ll believe it when we see it.
Anthony Joshua Vs Tyson Fury Talks Well On Track
Thankfully, one bitter British bust-up that should arrive without a hitch is the much, much bigger affair between Tyson Fury and Anthony Joshua. The battle for heavyweight supremacy is the biggest match to be made in boxing right now and according to Joshua’s promoter Hearn, the talks are progressing well between both camps.
Speaking on SiriusXM, the Matchroom promoter said, "We're close. Backwards and forwards with contracts at the moment. Things have been progressing really well over the last week. I really believe you will see that fight in May/June, everyone's working well in the right direction."
