Jake Paul’s boxing journey has been anything but conventional. His latest venture—a fight against the legendary but far-past-his-prime Mike Tyson—has ignited a storm of controversy. Was it a genuine clash of skills, or just another spectacle? The fight streamed live via Netflix, saw Paul claim victory over the 58-year-old Tyson after eight rounds. But the whispers of a rigged match grew louder as fans and analysts questioned the legitimacy of the bout.

Paul’s promotional company, Most Valuable Promotions (MVP), recently released a statement that explained, “Rigging a professional boxing match is a federal crime in the U.S. Paul vs. Tyson was a professional match sanctioned by the Texas Department of Licensing and Regulations (TDLR). Both fighters in good faith performed to the best of their abilities with the goal of winning the fight.” Yet, combat sports journalist Kevin Iole, a respected voice and friend of UFC boss Dana White, didn’t hold back. For him, the fight symbolized everything wrong with Paul’s approach to boxing.

Jake Paul comes under fire as ‘rigging’ allegations overshadow his win over Mike Tyson

Speaking in a video on his YouTube channel, Kevin Iole reminded fans of Mike Tyson’s last official bouts two decades ago. He stated, “In his last two fights against Danny Williams and Kevin McBride, neither one of whom would have been a pimple on his b–t during the prime of his career. He was completely shot, and couldn’t do anything against either of those guys.”

“How did you think that 20 years later, at 58 years old, he was somehow going to find the Fountain of Youth?” Iole asked, dismantling the idea that had been floating amongst certain sections online that Tyson could compete at a high level again and possibly quelling the ‘rigging’ conversations.

But Iole’s criticism didn’t stop with Tyson. He pointed a finger at Paul’s matchmaking, as he stated, “Now the problem with this is the matchmaking, these are the kind of fights that Jake Paul is taking.” He likened Paul’s rise in boxing to an amateur golfer dreaming of winning the Masters after a few years of practice. Improvement, he noted, doesn’t equate to mastery.

“At his best, Jake Paul is a mid-level, meh, cruiserweight boxer,” Iole further stated.  While acknowledging ‘The Problem Child’s improvement in the sport, the veteran combat sports journalist dismissed any notion of him achieving elite status as he continued by claiming, “He is not going to be a world champion. He is not going to be a guy that is ranked in the pound-for-pound list, none of that is true.”

Kevin Iole’s harsh critique only adds to the mounting pressure on Paul to prove himself against legitimate contenders. However, the influencer-turned-boxer hasn’t shied away from the controversy as both he and his manager have come out guns blazing against the ‘rigging’ allegations that have been hanging over the Mike Tyson bout.

Paul and his manager fire off a salvo against critics of Tyson fight

Nakisa Bidarian, Jake Paul‘s manager, and co-founder of Most Valuable Promotions (MVP), wasn’t about to let the doubters have the last word. According to a recent statement, Bidarian fired off against the critics by stating, “As long as Jake continues to exceed expectations, there will always be those who try to discredit his achievements. We embrace the doubt – it only fuels Jake to work harder and achieve greater success”

On his brother Logan’s ‘Impaulsive’ podcast, ‘The Problem Child’ also took the time to address the waves of criticism being directed towards him. He bluntly stated, “People are like, ‘Oh, it’s rigged because look at him on the pads but he didn’t do this in the fight, that’s because someone is f—–g punching back, you dumb f–k.”

He also indicated that the punches weren’t just for show; they were real, and Tyson was proving difficult to land on. Paul struggled with Tyson’s elusiveness, admitting he missed more punches than he’d like to against the heavyweight legend. His resilience to criticism is undeniable—every jab at his abilities seems to make him work harder to prove the doubters wrong. But the question lingers, will Jake Paul face off against an elite boxer in his prime anytime soon? What do you think? Let us know your thoughts in the comments below!