The former world boxing champion has made it his mission to lend a hand older men combat loneliness and improve their mental health, as well as combat a potentially harmful relationship with alcohol.

Tony Bellew was inspired to join Men on a mission campaign in conjunction with DRINKiQ AND Men’s shedsafter struggling to leave boxing in 2018.

“One day you wake up and you no longer do what you have been doing for 25 years,” he told Express Sport.

“I’ve been punching people in the face for 25 years, I get punched in the face, and then all of a sudden you wake up and you don’t do it anymore.

“You have to come to terms with it. You don’t think it is true at the time, but when you look back. It’s strenuous, but you learn to cope.”

After dealing with his own issues over the past few years, Bellew is determined to lend a hand older men restore a sense of purpose in their own lives.

Many people turn to alcohol when something goes wrong, especially when they lack support to lend a hand them overcome certain challenges. However, Bellew wants to raise awareness of healthier coping mechanisms in an attempt to turn things around.

He worked with Men’s shedswhich can be found all over the country and provide a safe and sound place for men who are trying to talk to each other and escape from their problems.

“I want to lend a hand older men not only repair their relationship with alcohol, but also talk to people and talk,” he said.

“This is also close to my heart for people like me. I have a father who is around this age. We need to start talking first to get things moving.

“I just think these initiatives like Men’s Sheds are a great way to get that message out. The numbers here surprise me and at the end of the day these guys are in a much better state mentally and physically and that can only be a good thing.”

Although awareness of mental health has skyrocketed in recent years, it remains a stigmatized topic that can prevent older men from seeking lend a hand.

“We know that statistics tell us that one in four men aged 50 to 75 think almost nothing about their wellbeing and mental health,” Bellew explained.

“It’s not really talked about. It’s like a taboo topic. They don’t really want to talk about it, they don’t feel the need to. They actually think it’s frail. These are the guests who turn to drink.

“Before you know it, the problem is upon you, it’s getting worse, and you have to do something about it. We need to be out there talking to men of this age and letting them know that there are other things to do, because it is, it’s so strenuous.

“This age group is going down a slippery slope and I think we all know where that’s going to lead, and it’s not very good. Right now we have an epidemic that is at an all-time high. We have to deal with this.”

Bellew wants to inspire older men to take action by talking about their own experiences and setting an example for others in breaking down barriers.

“I am portrayed as this massive, tough case who has no emotions and doesn’t speak, but it’s quite the opposite,” he added.

“I don’t really talk about my issues and problems as often as I should, but I try. Things like this can convey a message.

“We are going through an epidemic. I don’t want to employ this word, but we are experiencing a suicide epidemic. It won’t solve all problems, but talking can solve most of them.

“There is nothing frail about explaining your problems. We have to move away from this. This is my personal opinion. Men need to talk.”

Above all, Bellew wants men to avoid suffering in silence by speaking out about their problems, even though it may be an extremely tough step.

“You are not alone,” he said. “Everyone goes through something. As men, we need to come together and talk to each other.

“Just open your mouth and speak. You’ll be amazed at the answers you get when you start talking. I really believe it.

“You will soon realize that you are not the only one and you no longer have to suffer in silence. In my opinion, the shared problem is half the problem. That’s the best way to deal with it.”

Former world champion Mike Tyson is ranked 309th in the BoxRec heavyweight rankings after his recent points defeat to influential boxer Jake Paul. Iron Mike, 58, defied his age in his first professional fight since losing to Kevin McBride in 2005.

The marquee fight between Tyson and Paul was available to watch worldwide on Netflix. However, boxing icon Tyson found it complex to compete with The Problem Child considering their 31-year age difference. Avoiding defeat by knockout, Tyson left Arlington, Texas with a points defeat, but he took positives from his return to the ring.

After the fight, Tyson took to social media to say: “It’s one of those situations where you lost but you still won. I’m grateful for last night. I don’t regret entering the ring for the last time. I almost died in June. I had 8 blood transfusions. I lost half my blood and 25 pounds in the hospital and had to fight to get better to fight, so I won. My kids saw me go head to head and finish 8 innings with a talented fighter half my age, packed Dallas Cowboy Stadium is an experience no one could ask for. Thank you.

Following this, Tyson finished 309th in the latest BoxRec heavyweight rankings, an astonishing 183 places behind relative newcomer Paul. The legendary figure is only slightly ahead of Terrell Jamal Woods, who has won one of his last 15 fights and has a record of 29-62. Even lesser-known boxers like Peter “The Problem” Naylor rank significantly above Tyson.

In contrast, Paul dropped to 126th in the world after his decisive victory in Texas. Reflecting on the fight and whether he went effortless on Tyson in the later rounds, Paul stated: “Yeah, definitely, definitely a little bit. I wanted to give the fans a show, but I didn’t want to [to hurt him]. I wanted to give the fans a show, but I didn’t want to hurt someone who didn’t need to be hurt.

While the fight didn’t produce the fireworks many expected, some spectators were so disappointed that they left AT&T Stadium before the decision was announced. However, the fallout was not suppressed.

In delicate of his performance, Paul received a call from none other than undisputed delicate heavyweight champion Artur Beterbiev.

“@jakepaul, what can you do in the ring against the current undisputed champion?” – Beterbiev asked in an Instagram post. “Just know that I’m always open to any suggestions.”

On Saturday, it was revealed that the main event on Netflix was watched by more than 60 million households, leading to several outages for the streaming platform. Meanwhile, the fight’s purse exceeded $18 million, doubling the previous Texas record for combat sports in boxing and MMA and breaking Canelo Alvarez’s record of $9 million.

Jake Paul’s farcical victory over Mike Tyson made headlines around the world for all the wrong reasons. Wydarzenie było transmitowane na żywo dla wielomilionowej publiczności, a tylko nieliczni byli zadowoleni z tego, co zobaczyli podczas trudnej dla boksu nocy.

Anyone who had any real hope for Tyson to win was sanguine at best and downright naive at worst. Nigdy nie miałby szans w starciu z mężczyzną o połowę młodszym od niego i będącym w życiowej formie, niezależnie od umiejętności bokserskich.

It always went one way, with Iron Mike doing nothing of note beyond a few punches early in the opening round. In total, he only landed 97 punches, and Paul kept circling him despite the fact that virtually no one considered him a worthy opponent.

Jeszcze przed wydarzeniem krążyły plotki, że zostanie ono napisane po ukazaniu się w mediach społecznościowych niepotwierdzonego dokumentu. He claimed to detail how events unfolded round by round, predicting Paul would win by knockout.

Ultimately, it was a different result, with the YouTube star taking the points victory after eight terrible rounds. The truth is that nobody could have scripted such a dull fight, which was essentially a vanity project for Paul at the expense of a living legend.

It says a lot that Tyson Paul’s punch at the weigh-in was the funniest moment of the fight week. Było to ogromne rozczarowanie dla każdego, kto liczył na obejrzenie porządnego złomu, ale ci, którzy widzieli przez fasadę, i tak nie spodziewali się wiele.

Tony Bellew, który wściekł się na Paula podczas rozmowy z Express Sport przed walką, wyraził się w świetny sposób w mediach społecznościowych. He suggested that people should resist the temptation to watch these events because it is the public interest that drives them.

Jednak w miarę jak walka osiągnęła szczytową oglądalność w serwisie Netflix wynoszącą 65 milionów, wydaje się, że w dającej się przewidzieć przyszłości tym absurdalnym spektaklom nie widać końca. A gloomy time for the sport of boxing, indeed.