On Nov. 15, YouTuber-turned-boxer Jake Paul faced former World Heavyweight Champion Mike Tyson in the ring, and after eight rounds, Paul won by unanimous decision.
Despite being such an anticipated fight by both boxing fans and people unfamiliar with the sport, the fight was a massive flop.
The two fighters both seemed hesitant to make any punches as they aimlessly circled each other. Tyson landed a total of 18 punches out of a total of 97 thrown in the entire 16 minutes, which is staggering compared to the 78 landed and 278 thrown by Paul.
By the fourth round, the crowd was done and resorted to booing the two, and by the next, a tired Tyson could be seen struggling to keep his mouthpiece in as both he and Paul continued to half-heartedly poke at each other.
In an interview after the match, Paul even admited to going easy on Tyson.
“I wanted to give the fans a show, but I didn’t want to hurt someone that didn’t need to be hurt.”
It was a show all right— just not a good one.
Watching it on Netflix did the match no favors because not only was it incredibly boring, but the streaming service kept buffering, hindering the overall viewing experience.
Additionally, the fight had been hyped up for a couple of years—and was even postponed on July 20—making the lackluster fight an even bigger disappointment.
After the fight, widespread speculation was that the entire fight was scripted. Clips of missed opportunities by Tyson have gone viral and have been analyzed over social media platforms.
But in the end, Tyson never really stood a chance. Even being a boxing legend, Tyson has been professionally retired since 2005 and is nearing 60. He went against someone half his age in the prime of his career.
If Paul had gone against Tyson in his prime as a professional boxer, it is widely believed he would have been absolutely destroyed. So, given the fact that Tyson is a member of AARP, it’s not the most impressive win; most 20-year-olds could win in a fight against a 60-year-old.
After the fight, there were many people who felt sympathy for Tyson and posted criticism of Paul fighting an old man.
One TikTok user even said, “am i the only one who wants to give mike tyson a hug after that fight..like poor guy just wanted one last win :(”
Tyson garnering sympathy was the only groundbreaking element of the spectacle. He is, in fact, not some poor old man as some make him out to be. It is estimated that Tyson will make $20 million for the fight. Paul is estimated to receive $40 million just for appearing, in addition to the winner’s prize. While it is half of what Paul would receive, I doubt Tyson is all that upset about a loss with his wallet being $20 million richer considering his financial misfortunes.
The match before the main event between Katie Taylor and Amanda Serrano is widely agreed to be a much more astounding fight. This preliminary match has sparked a much greater amount of conversation and was a highlight in an otherwise bland almost five-hour spectacle.
At the end of the day, the match was a huge waste of time and wasn’t worth sitting through several minutes of TV lag. I, like many others, was expecting the showdown of the century, and instead what we got was the letdown of the century.
