Mike Tyson sends final three-word message to Jake Paul hours before fight

Mike Tyson, 58, volition instrumentality to the ringing to look the erstwhile YouTuber Jake Paul, who is 31 years his inferior successful beforehand of 80,000 fans astatine The AT&T Stadium successful Texas

Mike Tyson has declared "it's a war" arsenic helium makes the last preparations for his much-anticipated combat with Jake Paul.

The erstwhile heavyweight champion of the world volition marque his instrumentality to the ringing connected Friday night, aged 58. It volition beryllium his archetypal combat since drafting with Roy Jones Jr successful an accumulation 4 years ago, and his archetypal nonrecreational outing since quitting connected his stool vs Kevin McBride astir 20 years ago.

He volition instrumentality connected YouTuber-turned-boxer Paul, who is 31 years Tyson's junior, successful beforehand of an expected 80,000-strong assemblage wrong the AT&T Stadium successful Dallas, Texas.

TYSON VS PAUL LIVE: Follow each the enactment with our unrecorded blog arsenic heavyweight fable fights YouTuber

The combat has been fraught with contention with galore believing Tyson is nary longer successful information to compete. 'Iron Mike' was forced to retreat from their archetypal projected gathering successful July aft experiencing an ulcer flare-up portion connected a flight.

But Tyson insists helium is acceptable to the upset the bookmakers, who person Paul arsenic the favourite, and promised a warfare successful the aboriginal hours of Saturday morning.

Tyson and Paul volition conscionable nether a modified rule-set with the combat taking spot implicit 8 two-minute rounds. The combatants volition besides deterioration 14oz gloves alternatively than the 10oz mitts typically worn by heavyweights.

Tensions were raised adjacent further aft an incident astatine the weigh-in saw Tyson slap his hostile crossed the face. The erstwhile champ said Paul had stepped connected his foot, triggering the convulsive reaction.

In the moments aft the slap, Paul said: "I didn’t adjacent consciousness it. He’s angry. He’s an aggravated small elf. Mike Tyson, I thought that was a cute slap.” The 27-year-old past launched into a bid of expletive-laden remarks, promising to extremity Iron Mike successful the upcoming fight. It’s idiosyncratic now," Paul added, earlier bellowing into the microphone: "He indispensable die."

Tyson told the New York Post: "I was successful my socks and helium had connected shoes. "He stepped connected my toed due to the fact that helium is simply a f***ing a**hole. I wanted to deliberation it happened by accident.

"But present I deliberation it whitethorn person happened connected purpose. I was successful a batch of pain. I had to reciprocate." A subordinate of Tyson's squad added: "Jake has been poking the carnivore the full time. Mike slapped the s*** retired of him."

Tyson initially retired from the athletics with a nonrecreational grounds of 50 wins and six defeats and a assertion to beryllium the astir devastating heavyweight successful history. Paul, meanwhile, has 10 victories and a solitary defeat, suffered erstwhile helium was beaten by Tommy Fury connected points.

Within those 10 wins, helium has mostly taken connected ex-MMA fighters including Ben Askren, Tyron Woodley, Anderson Silva and Nate Diaz.