Jon Jones challenges Mike Tyson to fights in the boxing ring, octagon
Boxing legend Mike Tyson took a playful jab at Jon Jones last week while making a serious point about UFC fighter pay.
“Jon Jones gotta fight me if he wants to make some super money,” Tyson said, as a part of a rant on the pay disparity between UFC stars and boxing’s finest during an online chat.
The UFC light heavyweight champion, for his part, has let Tyson know that he’s been heard. And he came back at the legend with a proposal over Instagram: Let’s fight in the ring and again in the octagon.
“Mike Tyson, I’ll box you in the ring if you promise to give me a real fight in the octagon afterwards,” Jones said. “And because I respect you so much, I promise I won’t break anything on you.”
Of course, the chances of the biggest crossover fight since Floyd Mayweather vs. Conor McGregor happening are slim to none. While recent training videos have shown Tyson in remarkable shape and with sharp reflexes, he turns 54 next week, and was well past his prime by the time he retired in 2005.
Still, Jones is at a stalemate with the UFC, as he’s become vocal about the UFC’s pay structure, in which only about 18 percent of company revenue filters down to the fighters, after the UFC refused to give him a raise for a potential heavyweight fight with Francis Ngannou.
And Jones’ post is a reminder that things haven’t changed, and that a matchup with Tyson is more interesting to the champ than recycling the same challengers in a division he has dominated for a decade.
You can see Jones’ Instagram post below.
Jon Jones challenges Mike Tyson to fights in the boxing ring, octagon