Well, the moment of truth is arriving soon as we’ll find out if Mike Tyson can really be the one to end Jake Paul‘s impressive boxing venture. But before we get to that night, UFC legend Chael Sonnen, who believes that the card is stacked against ‘Iron’, shared a take on Tyson’s status as a sporting icon. Guess what? ‘The American Gangster’ believes Tyson is perhaps the most popular athlete, even more than NBA legend Michael Jordan.

“A lot of people say that Michael Jordan is the most famous athlete alive or that Michael Jordan is the most recognizable. I don’t think that’s true,” Chael Sonnen stated on his YouTube channel. “I wouldn’t be able to prove that but I believe it’s Mike Tyson.”

Chael Sonnen even took an example by referring to the fact that his son’s classmates, who know Michael Jordan only because of his Nike shoes line, wouldn’t be able to recognize him if they were to identify the multiple-time NBA champion. But that doesn’t seem to be the case with Mike Tyson. “I take my son’s third-grade class, who have heard of Michael Jordan because of the shoe but couldn’t pick him out of a crowd, and know exactly who Mike Tyson is,” Sonnen added.

Well, if we turn our attention from what Chael Sonnen stated on YouTube and focus on statistics, Mike Tyson and Michael Jordan are neck in neck when it comes to being famous. According to the Q3 report shared by ‘YouGov’ on their website, 2024 has been the year of the late great Kobe Bryant, who tops the list. On the other hand, Michael Jordan has been placed 7th, and Mike Tyson on the 10th spot, proving they’ve made somewhat of a similar impact in sporting history.

However, there seems to be no animosity between the two greats, as Mike Tyson once shared nothing but words of praise for the 6-time NBA champion.

When Mike Tyson praised Michael Jordan

During a conversation with comedian Bill Maher on his ‘Club Random’ podcast, Mike Tyson was asked about his thoughts on whether Michael Jordan should be given the label of the greatest basketball player in history. ‘Iron’, in one of his coldest responses ever, apparently believes that the 6-time NBA champion does deserve that tag, and also praised Jordan for his “wholeness and determination.”

“You only achieve that [being the greatest] through sacrifice. Only sacrificing can make you the best in the world. Nothing else. You have to sacrifice,” Mike Tyson told Bill Maher. It’s been documented enough that Tyson didn’t have the best time growing up, and so has the problem been the same for Michael Jordan. But in the end, things turned out better for both legends because of their elite mentality.

Well, that’s Chael Sonnen‘s viewpoint, so we’d like to know your take as well. Let us know in the comments down below.