Mike Tyson was once lined up for a boxing match with a WWE legend, and the match was scheduled to take place at WrestleMania.
On July 20, Tyson will return to the ring to face Jake Paul, four years after his last exhibition bout with Roy Jones Jr. and 19 years since his last professional fight in 2005.
Tyson, once the youngest heavyweight champion in history and the first heavyweight to hold the WBA, WBC and IBF titles, will face the YouTuber-turned-boxer in Texas.
Paul, who is 30 years younger than Tyson, has 10 professional fights and has a 9-1 record against heavyweight Tommy Fury.
Years before Tyson agreed to fight Paul, he was scheduled to have a bizarre crossover match with another superstar.
Triple H, one of WWE's most notorious heels, was once in talks to face Tyson in a six-round boxing match at WrestleMania 17, with Stone Cold Steve Austin vs. The Rock also on the same card. It was planned to be assembled.
However, Iron Mike is said to have been demanding too much money from the company.
Triple H told WWE.com, “It was going to be six rounds. I don't remember if it was full boxing rules or if I was wearing gloves.”
Triple H is one of the most infamous heels in wrestling history (Getty)
“But in the end, it all ended up being a deal that would have been a tremendous amount of money, and it was postponed.”
Tyson competed in WWE while suspended from boxing for biting off Evander Holyfield's ear.
Iron Mike reportedly paid $3.5 million (approximately £278 million) for his appearance as a special guest referee at WrestleMania 14 and several appearances in the run-up to it, as he had no income at the time. He said he was offered it.
Oddly enough, Tyson's notoriety was further heightened by his controversial attack on Holyfield, with ratings soaring as WWE promoted Tyson as “the baddest man on the planet.”
Featured image credit: Getty
