Boxing Special Friday 15 November
This fight in Texas is certainly one of the more unexpected fights in recent years as we see 58 year old Mike Tyson return to the ring to take on social media influencer Jake Paul on Friday night. This is certainly not a fight for boxing fans and has generated a lot of controversy.
However, it has certainly also attracted a lot of interest and Netflix is ready to capitalize on the event. The fight will also be officially recognized and will appear on both fighters’ records, giving it a sense of legitimacy. A lot has been achieved in Jake Paul’s career so far, but he has beaten 10 of his eleven opponents so far whereas Tyson comes with a reputation as one of the best ever.
This fight will be Jake Paul’s heavyweight debut and he will be up against the former undisputed champion. There are certainly only a handful of boxers who can match the fame and sensation of Mike Tyson and his career speaks for itself.
‘Iron Mike’ as he is known, earned his first belt at the age of 20 when he defeated WBC Champion Trevor Berbick and he later added the WBA and IBF belts to his collection. Therefore, he is the first fighter to hold all three belts at once. He won the two belts again later in his career before finally retiring with a 50-6 record. It is worth noting that 44 of Tyson’s 50 wins came via KO or TKO and his last win came in 1996, a year before his opponent in this fight was born.
Jake Paul first entered the boxing ring in 2018, facing another social media influencer named Deji Olatunji, a fight he won. He has fought other social media figures while his only defeat came against British fighter Tommy Fury in February 2023, the only time he has fought a professional boxer so far. Four of his wins have come via points, but his last two wins have come via Technical Knockout. His last fight came in July of this year, a sixth round win over Mike Perry.
Speculation is of course widespread regarding this fight. No one knows for sure what the 58-year-old version of Mike Tyson will look like, especially since he experienced health problems last May.
Jake Paul has only really fought in exhibition fights so far, so it’s hard to judge genuine talent. Experts and pundits offered differing opinions on who might win the fight with Bob Arum backing Paul and the likes of former champion Lennox Lewis and former pro fighter Buster Douglas, who beat Tyson, believing it would be an easy win for Tyson.
The fight has been approved with changed rules, there will be eight rounds of two minutes each and both fighters will use heavier 14 ounce gloves.
Jake Paul is the favorite to win the match, considering Mike Tyson’s age. The odds are currently around 1.56 for Paul to win with various types and stop times. Prices ranging around 2.86 are available for anyone who wants to back Mike Tyson to win.
Last updated: 14.11.2024
