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Mike Tyson got back in the ring—and lost—but said he still felt like a winner for simply being able to fight despite recent health complications.
Learn more about the 58-year-old former boxing champion‘s past injuries, current health, and additional details about his recent fight with 27-year-old Jake Paul in Netflix’s live-streamed event below.
Tyson Reveals He Has Sciatica
Fans of the Brooklyn native were shocked to see photos of him in a wheelchair and using a walking stick at a Miami airport in August 2022. That year, Tyson revealed that he lives with sciatica, a condition described as “pain that travels along the path of the sciatic nerve.” According to the Mayo Clinic, the sciatic nerve runs from the buttocks down each leg, and sciatica often occurs when a herniated disc or bone overgrowth puts pressure on the lumbar spine nerve roots. The condition can cause inflammation, pain, and numbness due to nerve irritation.
“I have sciatica every now and then, it flares up,” he explained in a Newsmax interview. “When it flares up, I can’t even talk! Thank God it’s the only health problem I have.”
Tyson Claims He ‘Broke’ His Back
Apart from his nerve pain, fans may recall Tyson’s claim that he “broke” his back after his 2002 fight with Lennox Lewis.
Nearly two decades later, Tyson addressed the issue in an interview, explaining that his back has been “bad” due to the physical toll from years of training and fighting. He added that his “spine just starts shifting” as a result of the damage.
Jake Paul is going to sleep if Mike Tyson hits him with one of these shots 😳 pic.twitter.com/r6EoJqMy0i
— Happy Punch (@HappyPunch) March 19, 2024
Tyson Has an Ulcer Flare-Up
On May 26, paramedics were called to assist Tyson after a medical emergency occurred on an airplane. According to an eyewitness who spoke to In Touch on May 27, an announcement was made on the flight requesting a doctor. “Mike had some kind of medical emergency on the plane and paramedics boarded.” He was later recommended by a doctor to do “light training” for the next several weeks.
In the newly released Netflix documentary Countdown: Paul vs. Tyson, which chronicles the lead-up to the event from both fighters’ perspectives, Tyson shared more details about the incident that left him fearing for his life.
The original fight between the fighters was scheduled for July 20, and just a few months before, Tyson was training when he suddenly started feeling unusually tired. “I was explaining to my trainer, ‘I don’t know what’s wrong with me,’” Tyson recalled. “Coming here from Miami on the plane, I went to the bathroom and I threw up blood. The next thing I know, I’m on the floor, and I was defecating tar. So I came here, and they found I had a big ulcer—two-and-a-half inches—and it was bleeding. All my friends were calling me like I was dying.”
Tyson then asked his doctor if he was going to die, and while she didn’t say “no,” she reassured him they had treatment options. “That’s when I got nervous,” Tyson said. “I can’t wait to get out of this motherf**ker, man. God, I want to fight and start training. I don’t want to die in the hospital bedroom, I want to die in the ring.”
The heavyweight also revealed that he had lost 26 pounds and undergone 8 blood transfusions during the preparation for the fight, confirming the details after the match.
How Is Tyson’s Health Now?
Before the fight, Tyson downplayed any recent health concerns, telling BBC Sport that he was “just fine” but taking extra precautions. He even requested that those around him wear face masks for added safety. He had also been rigorously training ahead of the fight, which he described as “not fun, but it’s worth it.”
He added, “No one is taking it easy on me. They want to see if I’ll quit or not, and I’m still here. All the training is over now. The fight is the party—the training is just preparation, but the fight itself is the party.”
A spokesperson for the Texas Department of Licensing and Regulation confirmed that both fighters were cleared to step into the ring, having passed all mandatory medical tests the day before the fight, including heart and brain scans.
Earlier in the year, a medical expert outlined the potential health risks Tyson could face in his fight against Paul, especially given Paul’s impressive track record in boxing.
“In older people, the brain tends to lose volume,” explained Stephen Hughes, a senior lecturer in medicine at Anglia Ruskin University, in an article for The Conversation. “This lengthens the bridging veins and makes them more vulnerable to rupture. Alcoholism is known to accelerate brain shrinkage, and it appears that Tyson has this as a past risk factor.” Hughes also highlighted potential risks to Tyson’s heart as part of the overall health concerns.
Who Won the Paul-Tyson Fight?
Paul won by unanimous decision after both fighters went the full eight rounds, each lasting two minutes.
But the former heavyweight world champion—who had not fought in a professional bout since 2005, when he suffered a sixth-round loss to Kevin McBride—clarified on X on November 16 that he was “grateful” for the event.
“This is one of those situations when you lost but still won. I’m grateful for last night,” he wrote. “No regrets to get in ring one last time.”
How Much Did Tyson Get Paid for the Paul-Tyson Fight?
Online sources, including DraftKings Network, estimated that Tyson earned around $20 million.
Compared to his previous earnings, the difference in pay is significant. After being released on parole and returning to boxing in 1995, Tyson earned $30 million for each of his next four matches. This included the infamous 1997 bout against Evander Holyfield, in which Tyson bit off part of Holyfield’s right ear. Tyson was disqualified from the fight, had his boxing license revoked, and was fined $3 million, but he was allowed to keep his purse from the fight.