Mike Tyson has revealed an unusual fixation in his post-match interview in the Dallas boxing ring, where he lost to his opponent Jake Paul.
Asked why he was so often seen biting down on his own left boxing glove, the former heavyweight champion replied: “I have a habit of biting my gloves, yes.”
Asked why, he replied: “Um, I have a biting fixation.”
Tyson infamously bit the ear of his opponent Evander Holyfield during a world title fight in 1997, a move that saw him disqualified.
Asked if he was happy with his performance against Jake Paul on Friday night, he replied: “Absolutely happy yes. “I knew he was a good fighter, he was prepared but I came to fight.
Following the fight, which saw Jake Paul prove definitively victorious, landing 78 hits to Tyson’s 18 during eight two-minute rounds, fans slammed the one-sided outcome.
“Who next, Joe Biden” was one tweet that summed up fans’ displeasure at the contest between 29-year-old Paul and a man twice his age.
“BREAKING: Jake Paul has challenged Jimmy Carter (age 100) to a boxing match after beating Mike Tyson (age 58),” came another tweet.
“Terrible fight all around. I wasn’t expecting Tyson to go crazy but he barely did anything but bite his glove,” said another.
“Watching Tyson get paid 20 million to bite a glove,” wrote someone else.
Friday’s match between Tyson and Paul, which was prefaced by Katie Taylor Vs. Amanda Serrano 2, was the biggest boxing gate outside of Las Vegas in US history, surpassing $17.8 million. More than 70,000 were in attendance at the match.