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And once again, it pits a controversial, motor-mouthed veteran against a far younger contender many predict is not cut out for the job.
More than 60,000 fans will pile into Texas’s AT&T arena on Saturday to watch the spectacle of former heavyweight world champion Mike Tyson, 58, take on 27-year-old YouTuber Jake Paul in what critics have dubbed the biggest freak show in boxinghistory.
VIP ringside seats are being sold for a record £1.55million – and millions more will tune into the event which, in a groundbreaking move, is being streamed live on Netflix.
But it remains to be seen whether Paul can solve the conundrum that has seen fighters with twice his class pummelled to the canvas by the self-styled Baddest Man On The Planet.
In Tyson’s famous words: “Everyone has a plan ’til they get punched in the mouth.”
Until his retirement in 2005, the human pitbull famously won 44 of his 58 fights by knockouts.
Yet even Tyson – whose training regime includes microdosing magic mushrooms and smokingweed – can’t win against Old Father Time.
The three-decade age gap between the men is the largest in professional boxing history.
Gutsy Paul, rated a decent if inexperienced pugilist, may use his youth to give the ex-champ the runaround before delivering a knockout blow.
So is this simply a circus act or a legitimate contest in the spirit of the Marquess of Queensberry?
What’s certain is that it will be box office gold.
Rather than the usual pay per view, the fighters have signed a deal said to be around £31million each for Saturday’s early hours bout.
It is already predicted to be one of the most-viewed boxing matches of all time, and media analysts suggest it could usher in a new dawn for how live sports are consumed, with further plans to broadcast NFL and WWE events on Netflix.
Tyson is characteristically bullish ahead of the fight in Arlington, Texas.
Before Paul had his most recent and 11th fight, Iron Mike insisted: “Regardless of how old I am, this guy only has ten fights.
“If I can fight ten per cent of what I was, he only has ten fights, he couldn’t match that.”
Not everyone shares his optimism. Boxing great and promoter Barry McGuigan told a newspaper he fears Tyson will tarnish his legacy if he is remembered for “that sham of a fight with that YouTuber”.
The former featherweight, who will appear on this year’s I’m A Celebrity, added: “A 58-year-old man shouldn’t be fighting. He just shouldn’t. – Sun
Online Reporter