Jake Paul will face Mike Tyson in a heavyweight boxing fight on Friday night, after the pair were due to meet earlier in the year.

Mike Tyson opened up about his exchanges with Jake Paul during the build-up to their eagerly anticipated boxing match scheduled for Friday night at the AT&T Stadium in Dallas, Texas, where up to 80,000 fans are expected.

Initially set for last July, Tyson had to back out due to an ulcer flare-up but with the fight back on, concerns over the 58-year-old’s wellbeing have escalated, not least because he admitted struggling to walk after a training session.

“It’s hard to walk right now,” Tyson remarked at a Cage Wars event, though he assured everyone: “But two months from now I’m going to be perfect. The fight is won in the gym.”

He seemed unconcerned by what lies ahead, declaring: “Listen, I’ll do anything that will help me. I’m going to enjoy my time here tonight with all my childhood friends, and the hell with Jake Paul.”

In a conversation with Interview Magazine, Tyson disclosed that it was his idea to challenge the 27-year-old YouTuber-turned-boxer, recalling Paul’s initial surprise: “Well at first he was saying, ‘you really want to do it?’

When asked about the agreement, he recalled: “I said, ‘Yeah.’ He said, ‘okay, let’s do it.’ Just like that, real simple.

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Since accepting the fight, Paul has faced intense criticism, but when Tyson was questioned about the social media personality’s foray into boxing, he responded:

“Whenever you’re doing something right, there’s always going to be haters, okay? If you don’t have any haters, you have nothing. Hate attracts more money than love, I’ve noticed in my career.