Mike Tyson’s unusual tendency to bite his gloves during his comeback fight against Jake Paul sparked confusion among fans and commentators. Tyson himself explained the action as a result of a “biting fixation,” claiming it was simply a personal habit.

However, former trainer Teddy Atlas offered a different perspective on the matter. Atlas, who worked with Tyson during his early career, believes the glove-biting behavior was far from being a nervous tic. Instead, Atlas sees it as a deliberate move to preserve Tyson’s legendary, intimidating image.

According to Atlas, Tyson’s biting wasn’t a fixation but a strategic act to reinforce the public persona he carefully built throughout his career. By biting his gloves, Tyson was seemingly reminding fans of the “scary” fighter who once dominated the ring, especially after a legnthy absence. Sharing his thoughts on THE FIGHT with Teddy Atlas, he said:

“There’s a lot of questions out there about the thumb biting. Mike Tyson biting his thumb through the glove. First of all, that’s something that he did in his amateur days, he did in his pro days, and now, of course, he did it again.”

He added:

“For people that follow Mike Tyson, his career, they’ve seen it before… He knows what to say and the importance of having that image. That’s why he got all the money. It wasn’t about what he had left at 58. It was about what he maybe might have and the image. The scary guy. The guy who’s gonna eat your children, the guy who’s the baddest man on the planet. When people asked Tyson about the biting, he knew what to say. Again, keep that image, keep that myth. It’s important in these kinds of realms that they believe that he’s still the bogeyman.”

Tyson’s actions, in Atlas’s view, were designed to maintain that image of unpredictability, much like his infamous ear-biting incident in the rematch with Evander Holyfield. Rather than a biting fixation, Atlas compares Tyson’s glove-biting to a pacifier that a child uses to calm anxiety.