Heavyweight champ Mike Tyson is coming out of retirement to face Youtuber-turned-Boxer Jake Paul. And it’s happening right here in our own backyard at the AT&T Stadium. NBC 5’s Meredith Yeomans has more.
It's been called the biggest fight of the 21st century-- Heavyweight champion Mike Tyson is coming out of retirement to face YouTuber-turned-boxer Jake Paul.
And, it’s happening at AT&T Stadium!
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The clash may be months away but there's no holding back the hype for the fight. The intrigue has been amplified by videos of Tyson, now 57 years old, training in the gym.
Tickets aren't even on sale yet but more than 75,000 people have signed up for access to presale, according to Paul.
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But not everyone is sold.
Arnie Verbeek founded Maple Avenue Boxing Gym in Dallas, where top athletes train.
He feels the summer showdown isn't good for the sport of boxing and has safety concerns about a 27-year-old taking on a man more than twice his age.
“Jake is at risk because he's not a real pro fighter. Mike is at risk because he is truly too old to do this,” said Verbeek.
The event, according to Vivid Seats, is among the hottest sports tickets ever at AT&T Stadium with fans expected to travel more than 500 miles to catch the fight, each paying an average of about $500 per ticket, the site said.
“The only good thing about this is the purse, the payment,” said Verbeek. “It's a lot of money – 40 million - but what's 40 million when you can't count it at the end of the day.”
The fight is scheduled for July 20.
Whether it'll be a professional competition will be up to the Texas Department of Licensing and Regulation which tells NBC Dallas-Fort Worth, “The promoter has requested to have an event that day, but we have not received any proposed cards and thus have no details about what they are planning – and that will affect possible rules. All bouts are subject to review and approval by TDLR.”
