Mike Tyson and Jake Paul, fighters with Ohio ties, will have a boxing match on Netflix
ARLINGTON, Texas — Social media star-turned-boxer Jake Paul will fight former heavyweight champion Mike Tyson on July 20 at AT&T Stadium, Netflix announced Thursday.
The streaming platform will provide live coverage of the bout between the 27-year-old Paul and 57-year-old Tyson, who hasn't fought since he and Roy Jones Jr. met in a 2020 exhibition that ended as a draw.
Paul, who is from Westlake, built a significant fan following as a YouTube influencer and turned professional in boxing four years ago. He has won nine of 10 fights with six knockouts against mostly undistinguished opponents. His only loss came last year to Tommy Fury, half brother of WBC heavyweight champ Tyson Fury.
“Iron Mike” Tyson was the undisputed world heavyweight champion from 1987-90 and retired in 2005 after winning 50 fights, 44 by knockout. In the 1990s, he lived in a mansion in Southington, which is in Trumbull County.
“My sights are set on becoming a world champion, and now I have a chance to prove myself against the greatest heavyweight champion of the world, the baddest man on the planet and the most dangerous boxer of all time. Time to put Iron Mike to sleep,” Paul wrote on X, formerly Twitter.
Paul's second professional fight was on the undercard of the Tyson-Jones fight. His most recent fight was last Saturday, when he knocked out Ryan Bourland.
“I’m very much looking forward to stepping into the ring with Jake Paul at the AT&T Stadium in Arlington, Texas,” Tyson said in a statement. “He’s 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. It’s a full circle moment that will be beyond thrilling to watch; as I started him off on his boxing journey on the undercard of my fight with Roy Jones and now I plan to finish him.”
This article originally appeared on Akron Beacon Journal: Jake Paul vs. Mike Tyson, fighters with Ohio ties, set to box
