Friday, 15 November 2024
Friday, 15 November 2024
Former world heavyweight champion Mike Tyson, 58, will fight Jake Paul, 27, YouTuber turned boxer at the AT&T stadium in Arlington, Texas on Friday. The OTT giant Netflix will stream the event in five languages.
Besides 60,000 fans who will witness the fight live in Texas, Netflix’s 282 million subscribers will have access to the event.
Mike Tyson, ‘Iron’ Mike to his countless fans, had quit the ring in 2005 at 38. It was a shocking defeat to Kevin McBride. Tyson admitted he no longer had the “fighting guts”.
With a career of 50 wins, of which 44 were knockouts, he was no longer the fighter who would once end his contests as soon as they started. He was no longer the fighter who rattled Larry Holmes to avenge his icon, Muhammad Ali.
“I don’t have this in my heart anymore. I’m just fighting to take care of my bills, basically,” Tyson said in 2005.
His career took a different turn after this. For the next 10 years, the boxer acted in films like 'The Hangover', 'The Hangover Part II' and 'Ip Man 3'.
Then in 2020, Tyson returned to the ring again, at 54, for an exhibition match against Roy Jones Jr, then 51, a former champion, at the Staples Center in Los Angeles in 2020.
Jake Paul vs. Mike Tyson: Nearly 300 million fans expected to watch the fight
In March this year, Jake Paul’s company Most Valuable Promotions (MVP) joined hands with Netflix to announce they were arranging Paul vs. Tyson. In April, the Texas Department of Licensing and Regulations approved the fight.
At MVP’s Face 2 Face, when Tyson was asked why he accepted the match against Paul, he answered: “I believe this is going to be great for boxing. I believe I’m going to win.”
Branding the upcoming match as “the biggest fight of the century,” Jake Paul said, “To be able to share the ring with such a legend is a special moment for me.”
Could be the comeback Mike Tyson has been searching since the loss to Lennox Lewis
Three years before his loss in 2005, Tyson faced Lennox Lewis with the IBF (International Boxing Federation), IBO (International Boxing Organisation) and WBC (World Boxing Council) titles on the line. Even after one defeat (1996) and a disqualification (1997) against Evander Holyfield, Tyson’s boat was still floating. The loss to Lewis, former three-time heavyweight champion, shook things up.
A cut almost closed Tyson’s right eye in the eighth round. Taller at 6’5”, Lewis was relentless till he caught Tyson, 5' 10’’, with a straight hand to the chin. After Lewis, Tyson suffered two back-to-back losses before he retired.
His next loss came against Danny Williams. The Louisville crowd egged him on. “Tyson, Tyson, Tyson…” they roared, but the former undisputed heavyweight champion of the world was soon fatigued. He had lost his pace and rhythm. Tyson’s head movements dried out. ‘Iron’ collapsed against the ropes.
After 10 months, he faced Kevin McBride on June 11, 2005, his last professional match. At 106 kg, Tyson weighed the most in his career against McBride, who was six years younger than Mike.
It was near the end of the fifth round that McBride had Tyson against the ropes and landed several uppercuts to his face. Tyson was saved by the bell. By the sixth round at MCI Center in Washington, Tyson was on the ground - exhausted. The round ended and so did his professional career in the ring.
“I don’t think I have it anymore. I have the ability to stay in shape, but I don’t have the fighting guts,” Tyson told boxing commentator Jim Gray right after the match.
Tyson heading towards another embarrassment?
There is a 31-year age difference between Tyson and Paul.
It has been four years since Jake Paul turned pro. For Paul, the match against Tyson is a “dream come true”, and he believes he will deliver the “the biggest fight of the century.”
Although he has a professional record of only one loss and 10 wins, most fighters he has faced inside the squared circle did not belong to boxing.
Ben Askren, Tyron Woodley, Anderson Silva, Nate Diaz - most of Paul’s opponents had their roots in mixed martial arts.
1992 Olympic gold medalist Oscar De La Hoya condemned the idea of this match. “If Jake Paul wants to take boxing seriously, take the route that all the other fighters take. [Get] tough fights, up the ranks, top 10 fighters, top five, world champion. Not this route with Tyson,” he told FightHype.
Per the stats by CompuBox, against Tommy Fury in February last year, Paul landed 31.2 per cent of the total punches he had thrown. Six months later, when he was in the ring with Nate Diaz, he landed 35.4 per cent of the 491 punches he attempted. Against his last opponent Mike Perry, it was 42.5 per cent. So, Paul has become more accurate as a puncher in the sport.
At the MVP Face 2 Face, when Paul was asked if there would be a knockout against ‘Iron’ Mike, he answered: “It’s already written”.
In his response to whether or not he will knock out Paul, Mike said, “Clearly.” Well, one punch can change the fight. One punch can end the night. In the words of Michael Buffer, the famous ring announcer: “Let’s get ready to rumble!”
