Social media superstar turned professional fist-fighter Jake Paul recently announced that he will square off against boxing legend Mike Tyson. The two will duke it out on July 20 at AT&T Stadium in Arlington, Texas.
Jake Paul, who has been one of the internet’s most well-known personalities since 2013, began his boxing career in 2018 as the undercard for the first KSI vs Logan Paul match. After winning the amateur fight in five rounds, he would start boxing professionally amassing a 9-1 record with 6 knockouts. His past opponents include retired NBA player Nate Robinson and U.S. Olympic wrestler Ben Askren.
The two fighters have a whopping 30-year age gap with Tyson being 57 years old and Paul only being 27. As a result, wrestling enthusiast Jayden Weaver feels Iron Mike will not be able to hang entire rounds vs his younger opponent.
“That’s a lot of boxing and it takes some serious stamina to go,” he said.
James Howard, a professor in the University of North Georgia’s Department of Kinesiology, said the wide age gap shouldn’t be an issue.
“He won’t be what he used to be, but he doesn’t need to be … Tyson has 20 more pounds to use in far more experienced ways than his opponent.” – James Howard, Associate Professor at UNG
Additionally, Tyson has posted training videos to his Instagram page demonstrating his capabilities in one-on-one combat.
Regardless of the vast generational divide, the contest is shaping up to be the event of the summer. Mohan Menon, UNG professor and head of the school’s Department of Management & Marketing, said he believes the competition should draw in viewing numbers within the millions in addition to potentially 80,000 watchers inside the stadium.
Potential spectators have already made their picks on who will emerge victorious. Eliza Everson, a junior at UNG studying film, believes that Tyson will win, calling him a “killer”, while saying Paul only fights for sport.
“There’s no question here, Mike Tyson bit a man’s ear off. Jake Paul is out of his mind here.” – Eliza Everson, junior film major at UNG.
Weaver said he thinks Paul will walk away with the last laugh. That said, he said he feels that there are stipulations within the two boxer’s contract, making the matchup more scripted than people think.
Whoever wins, multi-billion dollar streaming service Netflix looks to hit financial paydirt with this event. The company announced on March 7 that it will team up with Paul’s promotional company, Most Valuable Promotions, to air the fight exclusively.
UNG Marketing Coordinator Madison Wimberly said Netflix could change drastically if the fight brings in a large audience.
“My immediate thought process goes to the NFL on Prime Video and how Netflix could soon incorporate that idea and notion into their own streaming service.” – Madison Wimberly, marketing coordinator at UNG.
On top of this, Menon said the partnership falls into the same strategy as the company’s recent deal to stream “WWE Raw” and others. He said if they find interest in such products, it could lead them to have first pick over such events in the future.
As for Paul and Tyson, Menon said profit should not be a motivation for either. He said the respective fighters are most likely in pursuit of higher glorification.
For Paul, Menon said a win in this fight and others could boost his career not just as a fighter but as a brand ambassador and entertainer. “He could be the next Rock,” he said.
For Tyson on the other hand, Wimberly said a victory could win over a younger generation of fans launching him back into relevancy.
