ROY JONES JR says a showdown with Mike Tyson would persuade him to come out of retirement.
Iron Mike, 54, has reportedly rejected a £16million to compete in a Bare Knuckle Boxing match.
A rematch against Evander Holyfield looks more likely as talks are underway over a November bout in the Middle East.
The Baddest Man on the Planet will take on a great white SHARK in an incredible man vs beast challenge.
Tyson will feature on the annual summer TV programme Shark Week.
And he has also vowed to “kick Chris Jericho’s ass” if he makes his return to the AEW wrestling ring.
He has literally been inundated with offers since announcing earlier this year he was planning a comeback.
Now 51-year-old Jones Jr has revealed he would also return to the ring if it was to face Tyson.
The former five-weight world champ last competed at heavyweight when he lost his belt to Antonio Tarver in 2004.
He then spent nine years at cruiserweight before retirement in February 2018.
Now running a combat school in Moscow as a dual Russian-American citizen, he told sports.ru he would not be able to resist the opportunity to battle Tyson with the pair never facing off in their heydays.
He said: “Yes, it’s true – Mike is a legend. It would be crazy to receive an offer to enter the ring with him and refuse.
“I had no intention of going back and fighting again but, for the sake of Mike Tyson, I agree to make an exception.
“For me, this is an opportunity that I cannot refuse. Of all those who wanted to go into the ring with him, he chose me.
“And since he did that, how can I say no?”
Former two-weight world champ Andre Ward claimed several months ago that Joner Jr had turned down a whopping £33m to face Tyson in 2003.
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He said: “There was a Tyson fight on the table and I believe I’m accurate when I say that it was somewhere around $40 million guaranteed.
“There was an upside too. You stay at heavyweight, keep the weight on, and Tyson wasn’t quite Tyson at that time.
“He was still dangerous but he wasn’t quite Tyson. I think they were working towards it. What I heard was Roy wanted more money.
“Roy somehow said, ‘No, the fight will be there down the road,’ and put his attention to Antonio Tarver, and the rest is history.
“I wanted to see him fight Tyson and ride off into the sunset. One more and you’re out.”
