UFC CEO Dana White is not thrilled about the boxing fight between Mike Tyson and Jake Paul on July 20
UFC CEO Dana White is not particularly thrilled with Mike Tyson’s return to the boxing ring this summer.
Earlier this week, it was announced that the legendary pugilist would step back inside the squared circle for a showdown with YouTuber-turned-boxer Jake Paul at a blockbuster event inside AT&T Stadium — home of the Dallas Cowboys — on July 20.
By the time fight night rolls around, Tyson will be 58 years old, more than 30 years older than his opponent.
Asked for his thoughts on the news during the UFC 299 post-fight press event, White was reluctant to slam the matchmaking, taking his friendship with Tyson into consideration, but made it abundantly clear that he did not approve.
“He gets mad when I do this, but Mike is [57], man,” White said. “I love Mike Tyson personally, as a friend. He’s one of my favorite athletes of all time. Let’s see if he can go in there and put together a training camp, but I don’t like to see the guy fighting. There’s a 31-year age difference in that fight. You guys know what I think of that stuff.”
Dana White comments on Paul vs. Tyson airing live on Netflix this summer
In another interesting twist, the fight will take place on Netflix, becoming the streaming giant’s first foray into live combat sports.
“I think that Netflix should have gotten into live sports years ago,” White added. “I think they are late to the game, but they are a force, and when you look at the amount of homes that they’re in worldwide… You guys heard me talk about the show Reacher. I posted about it. I love that show. I hate TV. I don’t watch any f*cking TV show hardly ever. Don’t watch movies anymore, but I love the show Reach, right? I can watch Reacher whenever I want to. I can watch it when I get home. I can watch it next week.
“Live sports like [UFC 299] you have to watch tonight. As all these massive streaming companies start to get bigger and bigger, they have to be involved in live sports.”
In January, it was announced that World Wrestling Entertainment would move its flagship show — Monday Night Raw — to Netflix in a blockbuster deal starting in 2025. It will be the first time the show airs exclusively on a streaming platform since debuting in 1993.
The UFC and ESPN will head to the negotiating table to discuss a new broadcast rights deal in the near future. The promotion inked a lucrative seven-year agreement with the leader in sports in 2018 that was reportedly worth more than $1.5 billion.
With that deal set to expire next year, the UFC is planning to sit down with ESPN before fielding offers from other networks and streaming services looking to add the Las Vegas-based organization to their library.
Negotiations will be handled by the UFC’s parent company, TKO Group Holdings which is led by CEO Ari Emanuel.
