Mike Tyson’s Ex-Coach Reveals ‘Real Reason’ Behind Glove Biting vs Jake Paul

Mike Tyson’s former coach, Teddy Atlas, provided insight regarding the veteran’s in-ring behaviour as he faced Jake Paul on the 15th of November back in 2024.

Many fans were left confused during the boxing bout as Tyson seemingly continued to bite down on his boxing glove over the course of the eight-round bout. Asked in the post-fight interview about this action, the fighter himself responded by saying: “I have a habit of biting my glove. I have a biting fixation.”

Tyson, 58, would lose the bout to Paul, 27, via unanimous decision. When asked about why there was no knockout from the younger fighter, the influencer-turned-boxer said it was purposeful. “I didn’t want to hurt someone that didn’t need to be hurt,” he responded.

Teddy Atlas Discusses Mike Tyson’s Biting

Tyson’s former boxing trainer from the early years of his career, Teddy Atlas, spoke out about the habit, and had a different take on why the biting was happening.

Speaking on his YouTube channel, THE FIGHT with Teddy Atlas, the former coach gave his take on the situation, with a different explanation than the one Tyson gave.

When speaking on the subject, Atlas claimed that “thumb biting” was something that Tyson has had throughout his career, since the early days.

He would also add that Tyson knew “exactly what to say” when asked about the glove-biting. Speaking on his response, the former trainer of Tyson said, “In other words, so I didn’t bite his ear off,” referring to the Evander Holyfield fight.

It was a comment that helped Tyson to maintain his intimidating image from the past, according to Atlas. However, he maintains his opinion that the habit itself came from an early-career habit he developed in his younger years.

Atlas Feels Thumb Biting Caused by Nerves & Fear

When discussing how the thumb biting habit came about for Tyson, it was nerves and fear that were the foundation of the action, according to Atlas.

Many people had begun to speculate regarding the reasoning behind Tyson’s glove biting online. One example of that included Tony Bellew, who claimed he was biting down on his glove as a pain response.