Perhaps the fight was genuinely huge. Otherwise, even after two months, why do the echoes of the Jake Paul–Mike Tyson showdown still reverberate? On November 15 last year, ‘The Problem Child’ and the boxing great met at the AT&T stadium. The matchmaking between a young YouTuber-turned-boxer and a 58-year-old former heavyweight champion might have received a fair share of brickbats and applause.

Nonetheless, it went on to become a huge business success. As far as viewing is concerned, it might have sparked a new trend in boxing. Post-fight, Jake Paul made his intentions clear. For his next fixture, his sights were set on the ‘face of boxing,’ Canelo Alvarez! Time alone will tell how the equations will work out. However, with the first month of the new year drawing to a close, Paul’s cryptic message suggests a different plot line – one that could potentially feature elder brother Logan Paul. An interesting conversation revealed how the clash with Mike Tyson eventually converged.

Half an hour through their discussion, host ‘AK’ Reyes quizzed Jake Paul about a potential clash with Canelo Alvarez. Akin ‘AK’ Reyes and Barak Bess were hosting Paul and close confidant Nakisa Bidarian on the first episode of their podcast ‘Ring Champs,’ which featured on the ‘All the Smoke Fight’ platform.

Everyone expects the Mexican superstar to inflict a sound drubbing on Jake Paul. Bess opined that the fight against Alvarez could therefore turn momentous. ‘The Problem Child’ acknowledged. He attributed the excitement to one more reason – the brouhaha that emerged when he went against ‘Iron’ Mike.

“There was a lot of sh*t around Tyson being like old and 14-ounce gloves and two-minute rounds,” he said. Akin Reyes checked whether the Canelo fight would be a ‘legitimate’ one involving ’10 ounces and ten rounds.’ Paul replied that he wanted it to be a 12-round bout. “So you won’t ask for anything to be changed as far as, like, with the commission,” asked Reyes.

Nakisa Bidarian interjected, “He never asked for anything.” The situation roused Barak Bess’ curiosity. He checked with Paul whether he sought provisions for 14-ounce gloves during the Tyson fight. “No, no, I wanted 10 and three,” said ‘The Problem Child.’

Jake Paul vs. Mike Tyson: The journey to the fight

Then Bidarian dived in with more clarification. “They wanted 16; that was the one thing where Jake pushed back on insisting on 14. The fight was to be an exhibition. Mike and his team push for it to be a pro fight. Okay, Jake said, if that’s what they want, no problem, and we got the commission comfortable with the modified rules,” Bidarian explained.

Bidarian explained how they got around the idea of two-minute rounds for the fight. Across several corners, there has been a push for changing the rules in women’s boxing. From the current regime, where even the title fights involve ten rounds of 2 minutes each, to a regular 12-round, 3-minute format. So the MVP co-founder wondered why the rules (ten, 2-minute) can’t be applied to men’s fights.

Additionally, if Mike Tyson had knocked out Jake Paul, one can only imagine the heights of fame he would have reached. The victory might have even atoned for the string of defeats that marred his later career.

What about you? Do you think fighting Mike Tyson in a special-rules fight was a better decision than an exhibition or a regular professional match?