Mike Tyson, Jake Paul's manager Nakisa Bidarian, and Jake Paul at a press conference this week ahead of Friday's fight.
Brett Carlsen / Getty Images for Netflix © 2024
Social media star-turned-boxer Jake Paul and former heavyweight champion Mike Tyson are going head-to-head in a live boxing match on Friday night, streaming on Netflix.
Paul and Tyson met on Thursday night for a weigh in and final face-off. After his opponent allegedly stepped on his foot, Tyson slapped Paul in the face.
“The talk is over,” Tyson, who weighed in at 228 pounds, said before leaving the stage.
“Now it’s personal,” Paul, who weighed in at 227 pounds, responded.
Paul told CNN that he believes in his skill and is not nervous. He also said he thinks he will knockout Tyson — who is known for his brutal knockout wins — in the fifth or sixth round.
How to watch the fight
Paul vs. Tyson will be the main event on Friday’s fight card with six other matches scheduled to kick off Netflix’s first live-streamed boxing event. Anyone with Netflix access will be able to watch at no additional cost.
The stream will begin at 8 p.m. ET/5 p.m. PT. Six other fights will take place before Paul and Tyson’s heavyweight ring walk, so their fight likely won’t start until hours later.
Jake Paul: A 27-year-old YouTuber-turned-fighter
Paul, 27, rose to fame on social media platforms with viral six-second videos on Vine and prank content with his older brother, Logan Paul, on YouTube. Today, Paul boasts over 20 million subscribers on his own YouTube channel.
The younger Paul brother had a brief acting career with a recurring role on Disney’s Bizaardvark from 2016-2018. Soon after leaving the show, he began his boxing career with an exhibition match against fellow YouTuber Deji Olatunji. Paul won by technical knockout. His first professional fight was in 2020 against YouTuber AnEsonGib, who he defeated in a technical knockout in the first round.
Paul was accused of sexual assault by TikToker Justine Paradise in 2021. Paradise says that Paul forced her to perform oral sex. Paul has denied these accusations.
Mike Tyson: The 58-year-old former heavyweight champ
Tyson, 58, began his boxing career in 1985. In 1986, Tyson defeated Trevor Berbick and became the youngest heavyweight champion in boxing history.
Friday’s matchup will mark Tyson’s first professional fight in almost 20 years. His last professional fight before retirement was a loss to Irish boxer Kevin McBride in 2005. Tyson fought multi-weight class champion Roy Jones Jr. in an exhibition match in 2020.
In 1992, Tyson was convicted of raping 18-year-old pageant contestant Desiree Washington. Tyson was sentenced to six years in prison. He was released on parole after three years and resumed his career, though he’s been a registered sex offender since.
He was accused of rape again in 2023 by a woman who claims the assault occurred in the early ’90s in a limousine in Albany, NY. She filed a lawsuit seeking $5 million for “physical, psychological and emotional injury” since the alleged incident. Tyson denied the allegations in records filed last year in district court in the Northern District of New York. The case is ongoing, and court documents indicate the latest filings from Tyson’s team are due early next week.