Jake Paul broke an ‘unwritten rule’ of boxing during a training session with one boxing star ahead of his Mike Tyson fight.
Paul is prepping for his big-money bout against Tyson, who hasn’t taken to the ring since 2005.
While former YouTuber Paul has carved out a career in the sport, winning 10 of his 11 professional fights.
But with less than one month to go to the fight in Texas, a sparring video uploaded to Paul’s Instagram has gone viral – but not for the right reasons.
The American shared a seven-second clip showing him flooring his partner with a strong right hook, before directing a message straight down the lens of the camera to the former heavyweight champion of the world.
A defiant Paul said: “Don’t try charge at me Tyson.”
Paul’s sparring partner was later revealed to be DeAndre Savage, a journeyman on the heavyweight scene, who turned professional in 2021 after a successful stint as an amateur.
Boasting six knockout wins and two no contests to his name, Savage ranks 15th in the WBA Heavyweight rankings.
But Paul, who first fought professionally in 2020, has been criticised for making the sparring footage public, given it’s generally seen as a no-go for professional boxers.
Not sharing footage from sparring sessions is seen as an unwritten rule in some boxing circles, given the training ring is an inner sanctum and a place where fighters are trying to work on themselves and hone their skills.
It comes amid a backdrop of intense scrutiny surrounding the fight itself, with several big names in the world of boxing against the idea.
Eddie Hearn is among the dissenting voices, with the promoter telling The Sun: “I don’t think there’s one boxing person that really wants this fight to happen.
“So, they’re looking at it from a different angle, they’re looking at it from numbers, they’re looking to it for hype and I get it. I understand that this freak show may well do good numbers.”
He continued: “But I think if you genuinely care about the sport and the history of the sport and particularly the legacy of one of the greatest fighters of all time, it’s not something you’d ever consider.
“I understand their strategy and the business and if it does numbers, they don’t really care how it looks in terms of the empathy of it.
“I don’t think it’s ever something you’d see a real boxing person get involved with.”
Paul and Tyson will go head-to-head at AT&T Stadium in Texas on 15 November.
