Mike Tyson’s former trainer believes he knows the ‘real reason’ the boxing icon was biting his gloves during his comeback fight.
‘Iron Mike’ returned to the professional ranks after two decades in retirement to fight Jake Paul, who is 31 years his junior, at AT&T Stadium in Texas on November 15.
The 58-year-old impressed many by going the full eight-round distance before ultimately slumping to a unanimous decision defeat against ‘El Gallo’.
Mike Tyson’s ring return attracted 60 million viewers to Netflix, and many of them noticed that the former undisputed heavyweight champion was doing something weird with his glove mid-fight.
Teddy Atlas explains Mike Tyson’s glove biting
In his post-fight interview, he was asked: “Was it a mouthpiece issue, or were you just biting on your glove?”
Tyson replied: “I have a habit of biting my glove… I have a biting fixation.”
The previously feared knockout artist famously took a chunk out of Evander Holyfield’s ear during their first fight in 1996.
Paul played into concerns that Tyson may do the same thing to him by wearing a $200,000 diamond ear protector for one of their press conferences.
Teddy Atlas, who was a part of Tyson’s training team during his teenage years, believes the bizarre mid-fight behavior had nothing to do with a biting fixation.
The boxing coach and commentator insisted it was all an act so fans believed that Tyson was still a scary fighter capable of doing crazy things inside the ring.
“There’s a lot of questions out there about the thumb biting,” Atlas said.
“Mike Tyson biting his thumb through the glove. First of all, that’s something that he did in his amateur days, he did in his pro days, and now, of course, he did it again.
“For people that follow Mike Tyson, his career, they’ve seen it before. People were saying, ‘Tyson’s smart, he’s witty. He knows what to say and the importance of having that image.’
“That’s why he got all the money. It wasn’t about what he had left at 58. It was about what he maybe might have and the image. The scary guy. The guy who’s gonna eat your children, the guy who’s the baddest man on the planet.
“When people asked Tyson about the biting, he knew what to say. Again, keep that image, keep that myth. It’s important in these kinds of realms that they believe that he’s still the bogeyman.
“’Why did you bite, Mike?’ ‘I’ve got a biting sensation’. In other words, so I didn’t bite his ear. Just saying that is brilliant promotion for his brand for people to stay with that image. ‘Oh my God, he bit his thumb so he wouldn’t bite his ear off’.
“But it’s not that. He’s done it before. It’s more like a pacifier. Look, everyone gets nervous, doubtful, scared. Even Mike Tyson. It was more of a thing like a pacifier when a kid’s unsure. You bite down on something. Why? To suppress those feelings, suppress the doubt, the nervousness, the uneasiness, the insecurities. That’s what it is.”
Will Mike Tyson ever fight again?
Mike Tyson called out Logan Paul immediately after losing to his little brother.
After taking some time to cool off, the aging fighter released a social media statement that reflected on the medical issues he suffered before his comeback bout.
Tyson also hinted that Jake Paul will be his final boxing opponent.
“This is one of those situations when you lost but still won,” he wrote on X. “I’m grateful for last night.
“No regrets to get in ring one last time. I almost died in June. Had 8 blood transfusions.
“Lost half my blood and 25lb in hospital and had to fight to get healthy to fight so I won. To have my children see me stand toe to toe and finish 8 rounds with a talented fighter half my age in front of a packed Dallas Cowboy stadium is an experience that no man has the right to ask for. Thank you.”
