This UFC legend was surprised when Mike Tyson was only able to land 18 punches against Jake Paul.
Paul has made his name fighting legends of MMA, but when he fought ‘Iron’ Mike, it sent fans of the sweet science into a frenzy.
Now the ‘Problem Child’ continues to whip up a storm this time by claiming he will fight Anthony Joshua next year.
‘El Gallo’ does not care who he faces as long as the money is right and even said he’d fight brother Logan Paul because he wouldn’t lose.
UFC legend Tito Ortiz believes Mike Tyson pulled punches against Jake Paul
Fans and fighters were confused by Tyson’s poor performance, but no one more so than UFC light heavyweight champion Tito Ortiz.
Speaking to The Schmo, Ortiz revealed his feelings on the bout, including whether the heavyweight icon held himself back.
He said: “I was kind of bummed I wanted Mike Tyson to knock out Jake Paul, and I saw him pull some punches, and I am not saying it is fixed, but I questioned a lot of it.
“I just thought Tyson had a lot more I talked to Rafael Cordeiro, and Rafael was like ‘he’s hitting like a monster’.”
The Californian had the privilege of watching the 58-year-old train for his return fight after his loss to Kevin McBride 19 years ago.
Since seeing what the former heavyweight champion had left in training, Ortiz said: “I was watching him hit pads, and I was like, I would hate to be behind one of those punches.”
Tito Ortiz wants to squash beef with Dana White after years of feuding
Known as the ‘Huntington Beach Bad Boy’, he finished his time in the cage in 2019 after a 22-year career in the sport.
An unsuccessful foray into boxing saw him knocked out in the first round by fellow legend Anderson Silva.
Another boxing match almost came about, but it would have been against none other than UFC promoter Dana White, as the two have had a strained relationship for many years.
However, it seems the 50-year-old wants things between the pair to be water under the bridge.
He said: “Hopefully, one time me and Dana shake hands and just smash everything that was behind us that was before that was a different Tito Ortiz I was a young kid learning things.
“Age-wise, I was a little older, you know, I was a young kid in the game, didn’t know many things, didn’t trust a lot of people, that was my fault, that was my bad, and it’s behind me now, as I say.”
It seems he wants to make amends due to recent news of the White House card, which he said he’d love to fight on, but it remains to be seen if White will accept this olive branch.