Iron Mike and Titanium Jake are no longer fighting on July 20

Mike Tyson warned of a possible further delay to his fight with Jake Paul

Boxing fans — and sports fans at large — were surprised when Netflix confirmed that the highly-anticipated professional bout between Mike Tyson and Jake Paul was going to be postponed from its July 20 date. The fight would have marked Tyson‘s return to the ring in a professional capacity after 19 years away, while the relatively-inexperienced Paul will have to wait at least a little while longer to lay a glove on “Iron Mike.”

The official explanation for the delay centers on an ulcer flare-up that Tyson suffered on a recent flight to Los Angeles, and the 57-year-old has ceased training for the time being in order to prevent further flare-ups. However, while Tyson has remained confident that the fight with Paul will still go ahead this calendar year, doctors are striking a more cautious tone.

Will Tyson be able to fight in 2024?

Gastroenterology professionals interviewed by USA Today have uniformly recommended that Tyson continue to rest amid uncertainty as to when he will fight the former YouTube star Paul. Three of the seven doctors that the publication interviewed said Tyson would need four to six weeks of rest — otherwise, the ulcer could become perforated, and the former heavyweight champion would need emergency surgery to fix it.

After a month of rest, Tyson could begin training again, and he might be able to adhere to a timetable that would allow the fight to go ahead in the fourth quarter of 2024.

However, Tyson’s representatives have yet to confirm what type of ulcer he has, which could affect his recovery and return to exhaustive training. The intensity of those sessions — and how well Tyson responds to them — could determine the date to which his fight with Paul will be moved.

One gastroenterologist who spoke to USA Today thinks Tyson will be “fine” to fight in July as planned, unless he suffered a “catastrophic bleeding” from the irritated ulcer. And if the flare-up came from a smaller ulcer, Tyson could even resume training in a matter of days.