Why Jake Paul is fighting Mike Tyson

Netlfix is ​​poised to make a global impact through streaming Paulo x Tysona sanctioned professional fight between Jake Paul and Mike Tyson that has an interesting story about how the fight happened. The fight between YouTube’s professional boxing star and one of boxing’s all-time greats will take place at AT&T Stadium in Arlington, Texas, in front of a crowd of more than 60,000, and will be streamed on Netflix to subscribers across the world. world. The fight will represent a true test of youth versus experience between 27-year-old Paul and 58-year-old Tyson.

Despite the huge age difference, Paul vs. Tyson is actually a professional fight and has been formally sanctioned by the Texas Department of Licensing and Regulation. There were several deviations from the standard set of sanctioned rules to accommodate the older Tyson and the more inexperienced Paul, including heavier gloves and shorter/fewer cartridges. None of these factors helped to quell the enthusiasm surrounding the fight, which is expected to be one of the most watched boxing events in recent years. How the fight happened is as interesting as the outcome.

Jake Paul made a deal with Netflix for a live boxing event before Mike Tyson got involved

The event was organized by Paul’s company, most valuable promotions

Jake Paul and his boxing promotion company, Most Valuable Promotions, reached a deal with Netflix in November 2023 to broadcast the platform’s first live professional sporting eventwhich made business sense for the world-renowned Paul and the hugely popular streaming platform. This deal was reached before Tyson was formally involved in the fight, for ESPN. Paul, as an emerging boxer and international superstar, made the deal without a specific opponent in mind, although Tyson’s name was mentioned as a potential option.

However, Paul actually envisioned Tyson as his opponent on a global scale over two years agoput AP News. Paul would have shared the idea with Tyson, believing that he would also see potential, and from then on the fight became a reality. Netflix, of course, agreed with the idea, given that Tyson is one of the most recognizable people on the planet. His stardom, especially after such a long hiatus from professional wrestling, made the event an almost guaranteed success and was seen as a huge value-add for existing subscribers as well as a boost for new subscribers.

Why Jake Paul Wanted to Fight Mike Tyson (and Why Tyson Agreed)

Paul was interested in Tyson’s prestige, while Tyson is in it, apparently for the love of the game

Outside of the obvious lucrative potential of a fight between two global stars, Paul and Tyson each have their own motivations for accepting the fight, which several people in the combat sports industry considered to be a mismatch and disrespectful to the sport of boxing. Paul is interested in the spectacle and personal prestige of Tysoneven in his advanced age. Per AP news:

He was the one who wanted it to be a professional fight and I, as a young man in this sport, will not pass up the opportunity to fight the GOAT of boxing. It’s like Ja Morant turned down a 1-on-1 against LeBron. That won’t happen.

Tyson had a troubled past that included mountains of debt, so the assumption by many is that money is the motivating factor for his participation in the fight. However, Tyson insisted that the $20 million payout he will receive is not his main reason for fighting:

“That old Mike Tyson… he has no purpose in my life anymore. It just doesn’t exist… “I’m having fun in my life. I don’t have much time, so I’m having the time of my life.”

Regardless of your motivations, Paulo x Tyson is poised to be one of the top live streaming events of the decade. The popularity and global recognition of both fighters, along with the large number of Netflix subscribers, practically guarantees it to be one of the most watched fights of all time.

Source: ESPN, AP News