Most Valuable Promotions (MVP) has sought to ensure that any speculation that the Jake Paul vs. Mike Tyson fight was rigged in any way, but in case further evidence is needed, One of the night ring girls is offering it.
MVP co-founder Nakisa Bidalyan said in a recent interview with Fox News Digital that the fight was “100% authentic from start to finish.”
This speculation had already existed well before the match, but a moment of fireworks sparked further discussion about the possibility of a production.
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Mike Tyson slaps Jake Paul during a weigh-in in Irving, Texas, November 14, 2024. On the left is ring girl Sydney Thomas. (Christian Petersen/Getty Images)
Tyson slapped Paul in the face during the weigh-in, saying Paul stepped on his toe. Several people were needed to separate Tyson from the pole, and a scuffle broke out on stage.
Fans pointed to the posing, smiling ring girls in the background as proof that it was all planned. But Sydney Thomas, who has nearly doubled her social media following since then, says they had no choice but to not respond.
“I was so shocked that something like that happened. I didn't expect that at all. … But our job as event models is to stand there and smile. We should actually react. You shouldn't change your mind.'' You shouldn't be in the background of every photo and have such a big reaction,'' Thomas told FOX News Digital in a recent interview.
Therefore, Thomas had to keep her calm.
Mike Tyson and Jake Paul break up during a weigh-in in Irving, Texas, on November 14, 2024. On the left is ring girl Sydney Thomas. (Christian Petersen/Getty Images)
Paul Tyson's ring girl Sidney Thomas reflects on newfound fame and career goals
“I thought, 'Oh! He just slapped him!' But I have to keep this smile in my head, 'But keep smiling, in this moment. I thought, “It's going to be a hot topic.'' Get back here! That was my thought process.
“A lot of people also drew the line and said, 'This must be staged. There's no way that could be real. The models behind me didn't even react.'” They thought it looked fake. It's our fault, it's all our job to stand there and smile. I'm sure there will be these reactions, it was a shock, but that's our job.”
MVP shattered the notion that the match was rigged in any way.
“If we rigged a competition like this, it would be a federal crime, and me, Jake Paul, Mike Tyson, and the executives at Netflix would all go to prison. They put the entire company at risk. We're going to be exposing ourselves and we're going to be putting our entire lives at risk to do that,'' Bidalian told FOX News Digital last week. “It's ridiculous that people would even suggest that this was anything other than a professional fight in any way. … That was never the case in this fight or any of Jake's fights.”
Sidney Thomas poses in the ring during the Paul vs. Tyson fight. (Rafaela Milagres)
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Thomas recently reached 1 million followers on TikTok and boasts more than 750,000 followers on other social media.
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