Doctor Urges Mike Tyson To Reconsider Jake Paul Fight Due To Risk Of Brain Bleed, Heart Attack, 'Sudden Death' Given History Of Substance Use

A lot of people have been openly critical about Jake Paul taking on Mike Tyson in a boxing match scheduled for July 20.

The immediate talking point was always going to be Paul taking on a legend of the sport who is three decades older than him and hasn't had a professional bout in nearly twenty years.

Even if you take his opponent out of the equation, this still raises a lot of concerns in regards to Tyson's health as a 57-year-old retired boxer that is looking to step back through the ropes one more time.

Though he did compete in an exhibition match against Roy Jones Jr. in 2020, the fight was predicated on what appeared to be an unwritten agreement between the men not to attack each other's head viciously. 

"Iron" Mike could be putting himself in serious harm for even just training for this fight, let alone getting in the ring itself.

Senior Lecturer In Medicine Explains Health Concerns For Mike Tyson 

In a recent article for The Conversation, titled "Mike Tyson is getting back in the ring at 58 - what could go wrong?", Stephen Hughes gave his thoughts on the multiple health risks that are at play for Tyson in this comeback fight.

Hughes is a Senior Lecturer in Medicine at Anglia Ruskin University and he has some serious concerns about what this bout could mean for the combat sports legend. 

He raised a major red flag in the form of a subdural haematoma where Tyson could be at risk of tearing the veins in his brain.

“In older people, the brain tends to lose volume. This lengthens the bridging veins and makes them more vulnerable to rupture. Bleeding from these torn veins causes a collection of blood that presses on the brain. This causes confusion, loss of consciousness, neurological disability and, in some cases, death.”

Given Tyson's past where he hasn't exactly perfectly preserved his health, the Lecturer mentioned alcoholism as another factor to be considered in marking this fight as dangerous.

“Alcoholism is known to accelerate brain shrinkage, and it appears that Tyson has this as a past risk factor.”

Hughes also went on to highlight the added caution of Tyson suffering from heart conditions by training for a fight at his age.

“Middle age sees an increase in the likelihood of cardiac events such as arrhythmia (irregular heartbeat), angina (reduced blood flow to heart muscles), and myocardial infarction (heart attack)."

He also added that extreme exercise, as would be the case during the fight, may have lethal consequences in the worst case scenario.

“Extreme exercise can lead to cardiac fibrosis (scarring of the heart muscles), which over time may lead to heart failure or, sometimes, sudden death."