Mike Tyson will likely carry a weight advantage into the ring against Jake Paul on Friday night – but will be giving away 31 years to the YouTuber-turned-boxer
Mike Tyson has weighed in for his boxing fight with Jake Paul.
Tyson and Paul stepped on the scales behind closed doors on Thursday morning but no results have been released. Paul is expected to weigh around 220lb having previously campaigned at cruiserweight, a division with a 200lb weight limit. Tyson, meanwhile, weighed 233lb for his last professional fight against Kevin McBride which ended in defeat when Tyson quit on his stool after five rounds.
By weighing in, Tyson and Paul have completed the formalities to ensure their fight goes ahead on Friday night. They will ‘weigh in’ again in front of fans later on Thursday before facing off for the final time before the first bell rings in front of 75,000 fans at the AT&T Stadium in Dallas.
Learn more
Mike Tyson will face Jake Paul in the ring on November 15. The fight will air exclusively on Netflix, which is available for free with Sky’s latest TV deal.
Shoppers can get the Sky Stream bundle for £19 a month with a new Black Friday deal that comes with a free Netflix subscription
On Wednesday, Tyson was reluctant to engage during his final press conference with Paul. “Are you talking to me? Yes I am back. I am just happy to be here. I love you too,” Tyson said in response to his first question. “I’m just ready to fight. I’ve said everything I had to say, there’s nothing else to say. I’m just looking forward to fighting.”
This fight, which was pushed back from July when Tyson suffered an inflamed ulcer, collapsed and was taken to hospital, will count on the fighters’ respective professional records, but will only consist of eight two-minute rounds and 14oz gloves will be used rather than the traditional 10oz.
Asked for a response to people who say this is not a professional fight, Tyson replied: “Well, the people (here) speak for itself. I don’t have to answer.” Quizzed on what a loss would do to him, ‘Iron Mike’ showed a flicker of his old self.
“I’m not going to lose,” Tyson snapped back. “I am not going to lose. Did you hear what I said?” Given the considerable age gap between the fighters, Paul, 27, has been installed as the favourite. But Tyson said: “Thank you. Hey, I’m fine with everything, I’m fine with everything. “I am just interested in this fight here. I am not talking about fighting anybody, only Jake.”
Tyson had been happy to trash talk in the build-up and claimed Paul was a “manufactured killer” in comparison to himself being a “natural-born killer”, but cut a tired figure in the penultimate media activity of fight week. “Yeah that’s what I said, that’s what I said,” Tyson reflected.
Midway through the press conference retired-British boxer Tony Bellew attempted to speak with Paul via a microphone he had brought into the venue, but was quickly surrounded by security and host Helwani moved proceedings on.
Cleveland-born Paul, who lost to Tommy Fury in Saudi Arabia last year, repeatedly tried to goad Tyson and was typically more forthcoming than the boxing great. Paul showed off a diamond spiked ear cover in reference to Tyson’s bite on Evander Holyfield in 1997 and insisted the fight would not go the distance.
“Someone’s getting put to sleep. It’s going to be a war and we’re both heavy hitters. It’s not going the full 16 minutes,” Paul promised. Paul also offered bets to the other boxers in attendance that backed Tyson for victory with an overall 9-3 score in favour of the veteran from the under-card fighters.
The final word of a 30-minute press conference was given to Tyson, who once again stated: “I’m just ready to fight.” A low-key face-off followed before Tyson bowed his head and walked off with all eyes on if Friday’s bout can play out without incident.