Larry Wade: ‘People keep talking about Mike, but Jake’s shown you he can punch’
The YouTube star-turned-boxer Jake Paul has stopped seven of his ten professional opponents, taking out former UFC champions Tyron Woodley and Ben Askren, as well as Mike Perry, on his way from influencer to genuine boxing attraction. Now he’s doing something he hasn’t done before — moving up to heavyweight — to face the iconic Mike Tyson after adding close to 40 pounds from his lowest pro weight.
That kind of jump would worry most coaches. Larry Wade isn’t most coaches.
Wade — the strength and conditioning coach who helped bring Shawn Porter to world-title level and has worked with NFL players, NBA All-Stars, and world champion boxers — says Paul’s power has not disappeared with the extra size. If anything, it’s showing up against actual heavyweights.
“Jake has been busting up, knocking down heavyweights since the very beginning of camp,” Wade told Bloody Elbow in an exclusive. “So I don’t think this is going to be much different. He’s been doing a really good job of handling himself and sustaining himself.”
That matters because Tyson is 58. Even though he’s still Mike Tyson — still fast, still dangerous, still able to hurt you — age always raises the same question: how well can he take a shot now? Tyson could be devastating early even in his prime, but he wasn’t always the same fighter in deeper rounds. Wade thinks if Paul lands big first, especially early, people in Texas could be in for an upset.
At the same time, Wade isn’t pretending Tyson’s power is gone.
“Anybody and everybody has to be concerned with Mike’s power, Mike is still Mike Tyson, you can never take that away from him,” he said. “We’re concerned — but Mike has got to be concerned with what Jake brings to the table.”
That’s one of Wade’s biggest gripes with the public narrative. Everyone is talking about what Tyson used to do; very few are talking about what Paul has actually done.
“So many people talk about what Mike can do, but why is nobody talking about what Jake has already shown you he can do? His last three fights were knockouts, and in devastating fashion. That man can hit, and Mike better worry about that.”
‘It wasn’t fake’ — the DeAndre Savage sparring clip
One of the most talked-about moments in Paul’s camp was sparring footage of him dropping a heavyweight. Online, a bunch of people said it was staged. Wade says that’s because they didn’t know who was in the ring.
It was DeAndre Savage — an undefeated, WBA top-15 heavyweight with six KO wins.
“If you were Mike or anyone else wouldn’t you say it was fake?” Wade said. “It wasn’t fake, he got hit with an overhand right and it was a good shot and he went down. Savage is ranked number 15 in the world, he is not a crappy sparring partner. Can we say that any of these other guys had a top-15 guy in their camp sparring them? Hell no.”
That’s Wade’s proof that Paul’s right hand is carrying up to heavyweight. He’s doing it to big men in the gym, not just smaller cruiserweights.
Why the weight gain works — right now
Wade also made an age point: Paul is 27. Putting on that much size and using it for power is a lot easier at 27 than it will be at 33.
“With Jake being 27 and having the type of body he has, [the weight gain] will work for us — we have this conversation five years from now when he’s 33 maybe not. But right now he’s doing great with it.”
So for Wade, this isn’t some desperate bulk. It’s timed for Paul’s age, metabolism, and athleticism.
‘He’s world-class’
Wade isn’t just talking up his fighter — he’s putting Paul in the same athletic bucket as the high-end pros he’s worked with.
“He’s definitely a world-class, world-championship boxer and his athleticism is up there with the best of the best. The Shawn Porters and those guys, he has that ability athletically.”
Interesting detail Wade added: unlike most jobs he gets, he actually had to interview to work with Paul.
“They contacted me and asked me to come in, I did an interview and the crazy part about that is that I’ve never had to do an interview before in my life. Generally people just take my resume as what it is and ask me to be a part of it. They did the interview, Jake wanted me and I wanted to be a part of the program and now I’m here.”
The bottom line
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Tyson is still dangerous, even at 58.
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But Tyson has to worry too — Paul is dropping legit heavyweights in the gym.
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Paul’s last three wins were KOs.
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The extra weight is working for him because he’s 27.
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And it’s heavyweight — fights end in knockouts.
“Jake is going to win, and this is the heavyweight division. These things tend to end in a knockout.”
Original Source:
Donagh Corby
