The fight between the former world heavyweight champion Mike Tyson and the ‘youtuber’ Jake Paul, scheduled for next July 20, it will be dictated as a professional and will count towards the official records of both boxers, as announced this Monday by the boxers and promoters.
Regarding the rules of the Arlington combat, in Texas, it was established that it will be played at eight two-minute rounds, and the result will be included in the history of both Paul and Tyson, 57, one of the best boxers in history. It was also stipulated that both boxers will use 14-ounce gloves, more padded than the 10-ounce gloves that are usually used.
Tyson retired from the rings with a record of 50 victories (44 knockouts) and 6 defeats, the last of which was suffered in his last official fight in 2005, against the Irishman Kevin McBride, who knocked him out in six rounds. Expectations were that the fight, which will be broadcast live on Netflix, would be an exhibition due to the age difference between Paul, 27, and Tyson, who will turn 58 in June.
”Mike Tyson wanted it to be a professional fight. Netflix wanted it to be a professional fight. So I agreed to make it a professional fight. “Winner takes all,” Paul said on X’s account of him.
”For the last six weeks we have worked with our partners to satisfy the requirements of the Texas Department of Licenses and Regulations (TDLR) to sanction (the fight) Paul vs. Tyson,” confirmed Most Valuable Promotions co-founder, Nakisa Bidarian.
Tyson won his first world heavyweight title in 1986 and became undisputed champion a year later, almost a decade before Paul was born.
‘Iron Mike’s’ career began to falter in the early 1990s, after a surprising loss to James Buster Douglas, a rape conviction, and two lost fights against Evander Holyfield, which included the historic biting of his rival’s ear. . After being away from the rings for almost 15 years, Tyson fought in an exhibition match in 2020 against fellow veteran Roy Jones Jr. that ended in a draw.
For his part, Paul, a popular ‘youtuber’ with more than 26 million followers on Instagram, began a career in the ring in 2020 in which he has nine victories in ten fights, including six wins by KO. The duel will take place at AT&T Stadium in Arlington, the home of the Dallas Cowboys of American football, with capacity for 80,000 spectators.