Mike Tyson warned of 'hidden' brain damage risk ahead of Jake Paul fight

Mike Tyson has been warned any damage he endured during sparring could increase his chances of suffering brain damage in his fight with tonight.

Tyson will come out of retirement at the AT&T Stadium in Dallas to take on YouTuber Paul in his first fight for four years, and his first professional outing for almost 20. The rules have been adjusted from a normal heavyweight bout in the paid ranks with Tyson and Paul meeting over eight two-minute rounds while wearing padded 14oz gloves.

But Dr Damon Zavala, who is the Vice President of the Association of Ringside Physicians, explained Tyson may already have suffered damage in training. "He's not at any more risk than any other fighter when it comes to his brain," he told Mirror Fighting. "His age won't put him at any more risk but [the worry with his] age is to do with his defence mechanism.

"It's called punch resistance. Tyson works on his neck muscles, how he rolls with the punches... he has a certain peekaboo style of fighting, he can get caught with any shot. The biggest issue, which is a risk not just for Mike, but for any fighter, is what is called 'second impact syndrome'. That's when something we may not know about happened in sparring; if he was sparring hard and was rocked or even knocked out, he will go into the fight at a much higher risk of brain damage or of brain bleeds. That is always a concern but unfortunately we don't have fighters who are forthcoming with that information."

Tyson has dismissed fears over his health

despite suffering from an inflamed ulcer two months before his original date with Paul. Tonight's fight was due to take place in July but Tyson postponed his comeback by four months after the medical emergency.

He later admitted to collapsing on a flight from Miami to Los Angeles before coughing up blood. Tyson was taken to hospital where he asked the doctor if he was going to die. The former undisputed champion is confident he has made a full recovery - and insists he has the power to knock out Paul.

And while Dr Zavala admits Tyson may retain his power, his speed will not be what it once was. "Speed does not necessarily what it was before; his speed is diminished therefore decreased his power. However, his speed as a 58-year-old fighter is greater than most 58 year olds; he can still do it. He still has fast-twitch fibres and he's still a powerful guy but we are not going to see the same we grew up with."