How to watch Jake Paul v Mike Tyson and more pre-fight questions, answered

Mike Tyson is making his comeback to professional boxing after nearly 20 years, set to take place on Friday night in Texas. The 58-year-old ex-undisputed heavyweight champion will face off against YouTuber-turned-boxer Jake Paul in a special event created for Netflix, which is anticipated to attract approximately 300 million viewers worldwide.

Is that everything you need to understand? What about the regulations, their salaries, and the *checks notes* 31-year age gap? Keep reading for all the details...

Fight Date And Location: What You Need To Know

The event featuring seven bouts is taking place at the AT&T Stadium, which can hold 80,000 spectators and is valued at $1.2 billion. This venue is the home of the NFL's Cowboys and is located in Arlington, approximately 20 miles west of Dallas. While it's difficult to specify the exact time for the main event, Paul and Tyson are scheduled to enter the ring no earlier than 11 PM ET (4 AM GMT).

What Is The Ticket Price?

A strong turnout is anticipated, yet many tickets were still up for grabs at the time of writing, with prices beginning at $67 plus applicable fees. For those looking to splurge, there's an option called the MVP Owner’s Experience, which offers two seats just under six feet away from the ring, featuring luxurious leather chairs. This package also includes eight extra tickets in the first two rows, a pre-fight locker room visit with both Tyson and Paul, an opportunity to be onstage during the weigh-in, autographed gloves from both fighters, plus a personal concierge and security team throughout the week—all for a hefty price of $2 million (£1.58 million). And you thought rising egg prices were a problem!

How To Watch Paul Vs. Tyson Fight?

The event will be available for live streaming worldwide on Netflix, beginning at 8 PM ET (1 AM GMT), with no extra charge for subscribers. Before the main event, there will be three preliminary matches televised, including a highly anticipated rematch between Katie Taylor and Amanda Serrano, following their thrilling 2022 showdown. Viewers will have the option to listen to live commentary in multiple languages, including English, Spanish, Brazilian Portuguese, French, and German.

The first three preliminary fights that won't be shown on the Netflix stream will be accessible for free on the YouTube channels of Most Valuable Promotions, Netflix Sports, and Tudum, starting at 5:30 PM ET (10:30 PM GMT).

In a world where television ratings are declining, live sports are standing strong. This resilience has attracted the interest of major media and technology companies, such as Amazon (which has invested in the NFL) and Apple (which signed Lionel Messi), as they lay down significant investments in sports programming to boost their subscription services. The upcoming Paul vs. Tyson event will be Netflix’s third venture into live sports, following last year's The Netflix Cup (a golf tournament featuring F1 drivers) and The Netflix Slam in March, which showcased a tennis match between Carlos Alcaraz and Rafael Nadal in Las Vegas.

Given that Netflix announced having 282.7 million subscribers globally by the end of last year's third quarter, along with the immense appeal of Paul and Tyson across different age groups, and the remarkably low price compared to standard boxing pay-per-view events (which usually run about $80 in the US), this fight is almost certain to be one of the most-viewed in years, if not the most viewed ever.

What's The Reason For This Fight?

At 29 years old, Paul has evolved into a skilled boxer since he began his career and turned professional in 2020. He has won 10 out of 11 fights, mainly against older MMA fighters and fellow YouTubers. He believes this upcoming fight is a significant move towards his ambitious dream of becoming a world champion. He stated, “I’m focused on becoming a world champion, and now I have an opportunity to show what I can do against the greatest heavyweight champion in history, the toughest man alive, and the most formidable boxer of all time.”

While that's certainly accurate, the promise of financial gain is quite compelling. Back in November, Paul secured a profitable agreement with Netflix to broadcast one of his upcoming fights, even before Tyson was involved. Once Iron Mike joined the mix, both the interest and the potential earnings skyrocketed.

Fight Rules: What You Need To Know

Unlike many other novelty matches in boxing history, the fight between Paul and Tyson is not just a showcase event. Even with worries about the significant age gap of thirty years between the fighters and Tyson's lack of recent activity and past health problems, the Texas Department of Licensing and Regulation (TDLR) has confirmed that Tyson is fit enough to compete. This means the fight will have three judges present, an official winner will be announced, and the outcome will be recorded in their official records. Additionally, this allows sportsbooks to accept bets on the event, although at least six states in the US have ruled it too unconventional for wagering.

The Texas commission has implemented several safety measures. The match will consist of eight rounds rather than the standard 10 or 12, and each round will last two minutes instead of the usual three. Additionally, Tyson and Paul will wear 14-ounce gloves instead of the standard 10-ounce ones to reduce the impact of their punches.

What’s Their Salary?

The TDLR rejected the Guardian's request for purse information under the Texas Public Information Act (PIA). However, it's been reported that Paul is set to earn $40 million (£31.6 million) for the event on Friday, while Tyson is expected to make $20 million (£15.8 million). Taylor is likely to earn $6.1 million (£4.8 million) for her rematch with Serrano, who is estimated to take home around $8 million (£6.3 million). This marks a significant increase for the Nuyorican seven-weight champion, who previously received just $1,500 for a title defense.

At Wednesday's last press conference, Paul confidently addressed his earning capability while taking a jab at undercard fighter Bruce Carrington, a featherweight from Brooklyn who had questioned his success. "The time I spend in the bathroom is what you make in a lifetime, my friend. Just be quiet," he remarked. Classy move.

Should We Be Concerned?

Honestly, it’s possible! The 31-year age difference between the fighters is believed to be the largest in professional boxing history, surpassing the 24 years between Archie Moore, who was 49, and Mike DiBiase, who was 25, when they faced off as light heavyweights in 1963. While Tyson still embraces his image as the “Baddest Man on the Planet,” the truth is he is a 58-year-old with a track record of health problems. He lost 26 pounds in May due to a severe ulcer flare-up that caused him to vomit blood and have dark tar-like stools, which led to the fight being postponed from July to November. Tyson has also spoken about sciatica episodes that have left him unable to speak at times, and he was seen being pushed in a wheelchair and using a cane at Miami International Airport two years ago. Numerous other states have refused to allow this match to take place.

Boxers don’t have a special day to honor retired fighters for a good reason. Every time a boxer steps into the ring, there's a risk involved, as it's one of the few places outside of war where a person can potentially lose their life without it being considered a crime. Eddie Hearn, the chairman of Matchroom Sport who promotes Taylor, mentioned to BBC Sport last month that he intends to be at ringside to cheer on his champion. However, he plans to leave right after the fight because he doesn't want to support a main event featuring an older fighter like Tyson.

Hearn commented, "The truth is that when Mike Tyson stepped away from boxing 20 years ago, he was done for good. If I were Jake Paul, I would honestly feel somewhat ashamed. This kind of behavior is risky, reckless, and, to me, shows a lack of respect for the sport of boxing."

Who Else Is Competing On The Card?

Hearn isn't the only one describing it as a spectacle. However, with two world championship bouts on the television undercard, there’s great entertainment for those who might not be interested in watching two fighters separated by over three decades go head-to-head. Here’s the schedule:

Neeraj Goyat takes on Whindersson Nunes in a six-round bout for middleweights.

Mario Barrios faces Abel Ramos in a 12-round match for Barrios’ WBC welterweight championship title.

Katie Taylor will face Amanda Serrano in a 10-round match, with each round lasting two minutes, for Taylor's title as the undisputed champion in the women's junior welterweight division.

Jake Paul vs. Mike Tyson, eight rounds of two minutes each, heavyweight match.

The standout matchup on the fight card is definitely Taylor's rematch with Serrano, where she's defending her four major title belts at 140lbs. Their initial fight in front of a sold-out crowd at Madison Square Garden two years ago was not only physically demanding but also incredibly intense on a psychological level—it surpassed all the excitement that built up before it. I was so tense that I ended up with a headache. If the drama in Friday night’s fight is anything like their first bout, it’s likely we’ll see a third clash before a massive crowd of 90,000 at Croke Park.

"Boxing: Boon Or Bane For The Sport?"

Boxing has consistently teetered on the edge of disappearing, facing criticism from the days of bare-knuckle fights in 18th-century England to the mob influence seen in the 1950s and the revived calls for its ban in the 1980s, which were often spearheaded by white middle-class reformers who were out of touch with the many marginalized young people in primarily Black and Hispanic communities it has supported. No matter how hard we might wish to eliminate it, boxing seems destined to endure.

Does influencer boxing undermine the art of the sport? Sean Ingle recently talked to Adam Kelly, who heads media at the global sports agency IMG. He believes that the upcoming event on Friday “will be one of the largest fights ever televised.” Addressing traditionalists, Kelly stated, “These bouts have drawn in new fans and sparked a renewed interest in boxing. If the sport only caters to its dedicated fan base with technical matches, it will ultimately fade away, as that audience will age and pass on. It’s crucial to continually attract new viewers. This entails creating a product that specifically targets individuals who aren't currently fans. If you don’t do that, you risk being on a dwindling path.”

If it’s making an impact in today’s competitive entertainment landscape and attracting attention to boxing, it can only be beneficial for the sport.

Who Will Win: Paul Or Tyson?

Even after the weigh-in on Thursday, those hoping to see the fierce and destructive Tyson from the 80s and 90s are likely to leave feeling let down. For anyone who thinks Tyson’s pride will drive him to perform strongly against an opponent he would have easily defeated in his prime, there’s a revealing moment in his recent interview with Rosie Perez for Interview Magazine, released on Tuesday: “Why should I be concerned about my legacy? I didn’t even understand what that meant until people started throwing the term around. To me, a legacy seems tied to ego. I won’t be around much longer. Why should I care about what people think of me after I’m gone?”

The Texas commission's strong regulations (brief rounds, reduced duration, and heavier gloves) significantly increase the chances of experiencing what's referred to in tennis as a hit-and-giggle: a lighthearted 16-minute match between business partners who are grinning all the way to their profits. However, the real outcome remains uncertain, adding an element of intrigue that perhaps it doesn't warrant.