UFC rivals Sean Strickland and Dricus Du Plessis unexpectedly united to slam Jake Paul for fighting Mike Tyson.
Paul is primed to collide with Tyson in an eight-round heavyweight bout scheduled for Friday at the AT&T Stadium in Arlington, Texas.
The highly debated boxing showdown has dominated headlines since its announcement, though not for the most favorable of reasons. The focal point has been the jaw-dropping 31-year age gap between the YouTuber-turned-boxer and the former undisputed heavyweight champion, a record-breaking divide that has sparked widespread skepticism about the competitiveness of the matchup.
Among the many critics of the Paul vs. Tyson bout, Strickland, who is no stranger to bashing "The Problem Child," has joined the chorus. The former UFC middleweight champion recently took to X and lashed out at Paul over his matchup with the boxing legend in a series of tweets.
"@jakepaul [Jake Paul] is a clown," Strickland tweeted. "Your ability to make money off stupid people is impressive, but being rich won't buy you dignity. You're fighting a 60-year-old man who is just trying to make a dollar by risking his life.. scum bag."
Strickland then reacted to the Netflix promotional video for the fight, taking issue with the "All it takes is one punch" tagline.
"You're fighting a 60-year-old... are you a f**king idiot?? This should be illegal... The man had a medical emergency a month before this because he's too f**king old. F**king clown."
Surprisingly, reigning UFC 185-pound champion Du Plessis chimed into the conversation, backing Strickland’s criticism of "The Problem Child".
"I don’t always agree with you, but I second that," Du Plessis wrote. "Still, believe Iron Mike KO’s him."
"Iron Mike" hung up his gloves after a loss to Kevin McBride in June 2005. However, Tyson made a comeback to the ring for an exhibition match against Roy Jones Jr. in November 2020, a bout that ultimately ended in a draw.
The Paul vs. Tyson fight was originally scheduled for July 20 but was delayed to November after Tyson experienced an ulcer flare-up during a flight from Miami to Los Angeles in May.