Perhaps even in the family. At the table, Zhang flashes a picture of his son, who still lives in China and sees his dad a few times a year. His name is Jingze—Mandarin for “respect the rules”—but he is known to Zhang’s U.S. contingent as Zach. Now 14 years old, he’s 6’ 2” and weighs 200 pounds. There’s no doubt where Zach’s size comes from. But asked whether Zach boxes, Zhang shakes his head. Likes school, Zhang says. Studies English. But hates sports. Oof. That’s one no. But there are still more than a billion to go.
The legal action renewed claims of cultural appropriation but also saw some Māori tā moko artists defend Whitmill. Legal scholars have highlighted how the case juxtaposes Māori and Anglo-American attitudes on ownership of images. Despite never making it to trial, the case has been widely discussed in the context of the copyrightability of tattoos, a matter which has never been fully resolved in the United States.
What seemingly started as a money-driven decision from Paul has since developed into an apparent love for boxing, with the social media personality working hard to be taken seriously by those within the sport.
Meanwhile, he also added a twist to his face tattoo and was seen enjoying it during new Year’s eve. Tyson has been donning his iconic face tattoo since 2003. He inked it before his fight against Clifford Etienne.
“Right now, I’m scared to death. But as the fight gets closer, the less nervous I become, because it’s reality, and in reality, I’m invincible,” Tyson said before adding, “I do not have no grudges against him. He’s beautiful.” If you say so, Mike. Where Paul is concerned, he has gone about promoting the fight in typical fashion with jokes and insults about his opponent, including a reference to the infamous ear-biting moment with Evander Holyfield and even a photo with a tiger. Now in the fifth year of his attempt to become an actual boxer, Paul has divided the boxing world with the large majority of fans and fighters considering him a gimmick. At the same time, some – Tyson included – have praised the way in which he has rekindled interest in a sport that has at times struggled to reinvent itself. Whatever the case, we must still come back to the ‘reality’ as Tyson calls it, which is assuming this fight happens, expect Jake Paul to lose.
Jake Paul might not always go against the best active fighters when he steps into a boxing ring, but there’s no denying he picks names that draw the most eyes (and money). And his next fight will likely be the biggest yet.
It’s just not popular. Not yet anyway. China has 1.4 billion people, but, says promoter Bob Arum, “that doesn’t mean anything. India has number of people, and you couldn’t sell a ticket to Mahatma Gandhi fighting for the title.” In 2013, Arum signed Zou Shiming, Zhang’s Olympic teammate. The relationship was successful, with Zou even winning a 112-pound title. But he failed to capture national interest. “The problem was the guy couldn’t f—ing fight,” says Arum. “He won two gold medals, I don’t know how, but he couldn’t fight.” Zhang, Arum says, is different. “Heavyweights are the baddest guys in the world,” says Arum. “And I think his ability is much greater than Zou’s was.”
In 2019, the Lanes re-entereded the picture, this time as advisers. Roc Nation announced it was exiting boxing. The Lanes negotiated Zhang’s release with Matchroom Boxing, which Duva had cut a deal with, becoming his lead promoter. For all the work George and his team of nutritionists did, maintaining a regimen during the pandemic was not easy. In March ’21, Zhang faced Forrest. He knocked Forrest down three times in the first three rounds. In the second half of the fight, he ran out of gas, ultimately settling for a draw. Zhang says in the week leading up to the fight he drank only one bottle of water. Afterward he was hospitalized for kidney failure, liver damage and anemia.
Tyreek Hill spoke on Wednesday about the incident in which he was handcuffed by police during a traffic stop, and the Miami Dolphins star expressed some regret over the way he handled the situation. Hill was asked by a reporter…
Bobby looked over at Cus and he said it was like watching a movie. Cus’s face turned red and he looked over at his friends who were there and everyone was smiling. Bobby later told me it was like Cus’s body had miraculously transformed. “His whole face lit up. You ever see a guy that gets scared and his hair stands up? Well, Cus had no hair but that’s what it reminded me of. His eyes opened wide and it was like ‘I have life again.’”
Back when Mike Tyson first showed up in public in 2003 with his now-instantly recognizable tribal face tattoo, the first reaction of many folks was, “huh?” followed by, “why?” followed by, “seriously though, box why?” But let’s be honest: was anyone going to make fun of him to his face and risk getting detonated by one of Iron Mike’s fists? No, sir. Not only was Tyson still the #1 dude who you did not want to get into a brawl with (and also the man with the most disproportionate “intimidating presence: intimidating voice” ratio), he had bitten off a bit of Evander Holyfield’s ear during a boxing match back in 1997. Tyson was considered volatile, as well as loose, cannon.
