One of Mike Tyson’s former sparring partners has spoken on how much he made his presence felt in his prime days ahead of his return to the ring

Former Irish heavyweight boxer Joe Egan has spoken of just how afraid he was to spar against Mike Tyson, when he stepped into the ring with him when the American had been just 17 years old. Seen as one of the more exciting prospects in boxing, Tyson picked apart every partner he came up against – with Egan explaining just how tough he had been.

Egan told talkSPORT: “Mike was several months younger than me, he was shorter than me and he spoke with a bit of a lisp and I thought ‘I’m going to batter this kid. I really had the measure of him in my mind, he was so nice, he was fascinated with the history of Irish boxing so we got on great.

“We walked and talked, we watched fight footage at the top of the house together and then we ran together the next morning. When we got to the gym, suddenly all these big powerhouses appeared, all of them very sombre because they knew what was coming. They knew the beatings that were going to be dished out by this young heavyweight. I thought they’re all going to box together and then me and Mike are going to box together.

“We stripped off, shadow boxed, bandaged up and Cus said ‘glove up’. Then I saw Mike in the ring stripped to his waist. The physique on the 17-year-old, the biceps, the triceps, the neck, the chest, the back.

“I thought ‘there is no way a 17-year-old boy should look like that, that’s not the same boy I ran with this morning and met yesterday, that’s not the same boy I sat with on the minibus, laughing and joking’.

“Then Cus pointed to one of the big men to get in and spar, he was knocked spark out with one punch. I’m not ashamed to say it, but I ruined a good pair of underpants in that moment.

“I —- myself. Two more got in, two more got knocked out. I was number four, I got battered for three minutes, but I stayed on my feet. I got out, a couple more got in, they lasted as long as they lasted, I got in again. I did six minutes with him that day and took six minutes of punishment.

“I spent two years with the man, never got the better of him, he battered me many times, made me cry so many times, but it was an honour and privilege to share the ring with him because of what he went on and achieved.”

Now, 40 years older, Tyson will return to the ring to face Jake Paul on July 20. And despite him being away from professional boxing for 19 years, many have noted how good of shape Tyson is in once again.

Tyson comes into the fight as the underdog, with Paul set to be 31 years younger than him, but many believe that his sheer power is likely to give his opponent some trouble when they meet in Dallas, Texas.