Jake Paul to face Mike Tyson on July 20 in Netflix’s combat sports debut
Those who have been critical of Jake Paul’s opponents are going to love this.
The YouTuber-turned-boxer is going to fight 57-year-old heavyweight icon Mike Tyson on July 20 at AT&T Stadium — the home of the Dallas Cowboys — in Arlington, Texas, ESPN is reporting.
The event will be streamed on Netflix, which has never featured combat sports.
It’s not clear whether the bout will be sanctioned by officials in Texas or an exhibition. Either way, Paul’s Most Valuable Promotions partner Nakisa Bidarian is overflowing with hyperbole.
“Jake Paul vs. Mike Tyson is a once-in-a-lifetime dream matchup and I anticipate it will be the most-watched boxing event in modern boxing history,” Bidarian said.
Tyson said in a statement: “[Paul has] grown significantly as a boxer over the years, so it will be a lot of fun to see what the will and ambition of a ‘kid’ can do with the experience and aptitude of a GOAT (Greatest of All Time).
“It’s a coming full circle moment that will be more than exciting to watch, as I started him on his boxing journey on the undercard of my fight with Roy Jones, and now I plan to finish him off.”
Paul, who defeated Nate Robinson on the Tyson-Jones card, also made a statement: “It’s crazy to think that in my second professional fight I went viral for knocking out Nate Robinson on the Mike Tyson undercard.
“Now, less than four years later, I’m going to face Tyson myself to see if I have what it takes to beat one of the most notorious fighters and one of the biggest icons in boxing.
“Just two and a half years after founding MVP, we are about to produce the biggest fight in history, a fight in the largest NFL stadium in the US, broadcast live, on the largest streaming platform. greatest in the world: a testimony for all.
“We have achieved it in such a short time.”
Tyson (50-6, 44 KOs) battled Jones Jr. in an exhibition in November 2020, but he hasn’t taken part in a sanctioned professional boxing match since he was stopped by Kevin McBride in 2005, almost 20 years ago.
Paul (9-1, 6 KOs) is coming off back-to-back first-round knockouts, over Andre August in December and Ryan Bourland last Saturday.
