From guilty pleasure to the spectacle of a lifetime, Friday's boxing match between Jake Paul and Mike Tyson has been called a handful of different things by different people.
None of those people, for what it's worth, have said they won't be watching when the 27-year-old YouTube star turned boxer touches gloves with the 58-year-old Hall of Famer and former undisputed heavyweight champion inside AT&T Stadium in Arlington, Texas, as Netflix makes a frog-splash into the combat sports pool with its first live boxing telecast.
As we draw closer to this long-awaited carnival of the unknown, which features a can't-miss women's boxing rematch of Katie Taylor and Amanda Serrano for the undisputed junior welterweight crown, let's take a closer look at the biggest storylines surrounding the event.
1. Isn't Mike Tyson way too old to be taking punches from an active fighter?
That has been the prevailing thought ever since this fight was first conceived last fall and, in many ways, remains the dominant selling point as to why -- despite the inherent dangers that come with allowing 58-year-old men to take punches -- at least most of the world will be watching. Now, for the record, especially if training camp footage is any indication, Tyson looks like anything but the average citizen who finds themself in that no man's land between middle age and senior living. Even with the added effects of age and the slight homogenization of his former "baddest man on the planet" persona, Tyson is still as scary and formidable looking enough that it isn't hard to talk oneself into his puncher's chance of pulling the upset. Paul might be an 11-fight novice boxer with no amateur career whose best boxing win came against 49-year-old former UFC star Anderson Silva. But he has also been -- save for a 2023 split-decision loss to Tyson Fury's half-brother and reality TV star Tommy Fury -- the pound-for-pound best boxer of the crossover bubble both he, brother Logan Paul and Tyson, himself, helped build during the pandemic.
Paul has gone 10-1 against a mixture of aging MMA veterans, journeyman boxers and celebrities. Tyson, meanwhile, reminded us of his irresistible pull in 2020 when his Triller-produced exhibition match against Roy Jones Jr. sold a whopping 1.6 million buys on pay-per-view. Just shy of his 52nd birthday, Tyson also turned in a throwback performance physically by boxing eight hard rounds. Should that version of Tyson show up against Paul, there probably isn't too much to worry about. But tell that to anyone who watched a 58-year-old Evander Holyfield, Tyson's longtime rival, get knocked around the ring in a 2021 first-round TKO loss to MMA legend Vitor Belfort. Yes, Tyson is at an age where it's almost criminal to allow him to box against anyone, let alone Paul. Also, Tyson might win. See the issue here?
2. There's going to be an insane amount of live viewers for this fight
Even if this fight card had been offered on PPV and even if said offering price was something absurd like $150, there's an argument to be made that Tyson-Paul could be a PPV juggernaut during an era of streaming piracy where that almost never happens anymore. Now, imagine the size of the viewing audience that could potentially show up when it's being offered on Netflix under the regular subscription price (and without a PPV upcharge). As of the third quarter of 2024, Netflix had 282.7 million paid subscribers worldwide. A standard Netflix monthly subscription plan (with ads) begins as low as $6.99 while the third and highest tier, which Netflix calls premium, is $22.99. It doesn't take an economics major to predict that the final number will be astronomical. For the standpoint of the boxing business at large, this is an interesting gamble. The PPV undercard is filled with a number of absolutely legitimate offerings and contains a handful of recognized champions. The increased viewership, provided the main event isn't a regrettable disaster, could provide a boost to the sport's economic future, not just in the form of more coverage on Netflix but beyond. Netflix is also reportedly in the mix to be a major player in the UFC's next broadcasting deal, which could be a shot in the arm for combat sports, in general.
3. Remember how good George Foreman-Michael Moorer felt? Now, imagine Tyson winning
While Paul is justifiably the betting favorite given his 6-foot-1 size, muscular frame, younger legs and legitimate punching power, there is very much a pathway to victory for Tyson. The key, of course, is that the previous sentence likely has an expiration point, most likely in the first half. Even at 58, Tyson remains impossibly explosive and, given that power is the last thing to go in an aging fighter, it's clear that he still carries enough boom to keep Paul honest. That's the sales pitch for the fight in a nutshell: Tyson can at any point … until the nostalgia and adrenaline runs out and all of us, including Tyson, remember that he's closing in on 60. But what if Tyson proves us all wrong? Or, more specifically, what if he catches Paul clean in the early going and knocks him out cold? For, the idea of "breaking the internet" doesn't even begin to cover it. One thing a victorious Tyson would also do is take the feel-good moment that was watching a 45-year-old Foreman become the oldest champion in heavyweight history in 1994 when he knocked out Michael Moorer and multiply it by infinity. From a storyline perspective, Tyson would be the aging former fighter who saved his beloved sport's reputation by getting up from the couch to finish the loudmouth "pretender" that is the carnival-barking Paul. Talk about a movie plot come to life. But more importantly, like Foreman, it would be a shot in the arm to the idea that age is nothing but a number. If you add to that the redemptive feeling of Tyson, whose professional career ended in shocking decline and disgrace in 2005, coming back to exit the sport on his own terms and it's not difficult to get caught up in the romance of such a scenario.
4. Jake Paul just might get his dream of a Canelo Alvarez fight after all
Look, count me in as one of a massive number of hard-core and traditional boxing fans who want nothing to do with the carnival idea of matching Paul against an elite superstar like Alvarez, who still resides among the P4P best in the game and remains the sport's biggest star. Paul's ambition and work ethic when it comes to how quickly he has transitioned from entertainment to boxing remains something that should be applauded -- if not admired. But he's also not anywhere close to the elite levels of the sport, which is why boxing fans and media alike have audibly groaned each time Paul attempted to hype up the potential in recent years. The fight against Tyson, however, has the potential to take Paul's already huge brand and send it into the stratosphere considering how many casual and mainstream eyeballs will be on the fight. Now, imagine the believable scenario of Paul beating up and finishing Tyson and you have all the makings for what pro wrestling calls a massive heel turn. Paul has strategically played the PPV boxing heel in the past, particularly as he marched through one aging MMA legend after another while declaring his boxing greatness. A knockout of Tyson could take heel Paul to such an extreme level that fans might love nothing more than to pay to see a legitimate boxing champion gain revenge for the sport at large. Alvarez is 34 and still very close to the peak of his powers. He also has appeared more willing of late to seek less risky PPV fights with big box office potential while conveniently sidestepping the more difficult fights (David Benavidez, Terence Crawford) that fans would prefer. Sadly, a future Alvarez-Paul catchweight clash isn't completely out of the question.
5. Katie Taylor-Amanda Serrano II is getting the audience it truly deserves
Women's boxing has undergone a renaissance in recent years thanks to two-time Olympic gold medalist Claressa Shields and the equally impressive accomplishments of both Taylor, the 38-year-old Irish legend who has won undisputed titles in two divisions, and Serrano, a 36-year-old Puerto Rican star who has won world titles in an astonishing seven different weight classes. Serrano, who is represented by Paul's Most Valuable Promotions, joined Taylor in a 2022 showdown at New York's Madison Square Garden, which was billed as the biggest and most important fight in women's boxing history. In front of an intoxicating sold-out crowd, the fight also somehow exceeded expectations as Taylor won a split decision to defend all four lightweight titles. Friday's rematch, which has been rescheduled or canceled multiple times in the ensuing years, will take place for Taylor's undisputed 140-pound title and represents, in many ways, the cherry on top of their respective, future Hall-of-Fame careers. A fight this important deserves an audience as big as the one Taylor-Serrano received inside MSG in 2022. So, how about AT&T Stadium in front of hundreds of millions on Netflix? Talk about the right fight, at the right venue, at the right time.