Mike Tyson 'could die' in boxing comeback, claims Dillian Whyte in message to reconsider
British heavyweight Dillian Whyte has urged Mike Tyson to reconsider his plans to return to the sport later this year, expressing concern that the 53-year-old could be killed in the ring.
Tyson is regarded as one of the greatest heavyweights in the history of boxing.
He became the first heavyweight to hold the WBA, WBC and IBF belts and later became the lineal champion.
Tyson retired from boxing after losing his last fight, to Kevin McBride in 2005, but revealed last month that he is in training for a four-round exhibition charity bout.
The former champion said he wants to fight again to “make some money to help some homeless and drug-affected motherf****** like me”.
But Whyte, 32, has urged Tyson to reconsider.
He told talkSPORT: “It’s silly. If they can’t sanction a fight with me for three years, why the hell are they going to sanction a fight with a 53-year-old man and a 31-year-old man?
“It makes no sense. That’s silly. Mauricio and I are cool, but it’s a very silly thing to say. He shouldn’t be encouraging it.
“What if he comes back and dies in the ring? What’s going to happen then?
“We’ve already got enough darkness and enough mud thrown on the sport as it is, we don’t need any more.”
Whyte added that he views Tyson as a “living legend” and was only speaking out because he was scared the former heavyweight champion could get seriously hurt.
He said: “It’s all good watching someone do a one-minute clip on Instagram.
“Getting back in the ring and fighting 12 three-minute rounds… don’t get me wrong he’s probably still got the power to chin a lot of guys, but at that age your mind tells you stuff when your eyes see stuff but your body won’t allow you to do it.
“You can think you’ve got it and you’re still this and that and you’re going against these young guys.
“We’ve seen it happen time and time again with older guys coming back and fighting for a long time. It’s just like, what’s the point?
“You’re a legend, you’re a living legend. Be that and leave it alone. But we don’t know people’s financial situation, what they’re doing or what they’ve been through.
“He might just feel like he wants to test himself, but there are easier ways to test yourself than coming back and fighting with these young, hungry guys.
“He might get seriously hurt and that’s the biggest worry for me.”
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