YouTuber-turned-boxer, Jake Paul has left an indelible mark on boxing’s history, but not for the reasons he’d hoped.

In a lackluster, eight-round bout that did more to tarnish Mike Tyson’s legacy than celebrate it, Paul dominated the former heavyweight champion, securing a unanimous decision victory in front of 70,000 frustrated fans at the AT&T Stadium, and millions more watching from home.

At 58 years old and having not stepped into the ring for nearly two decades, Tyson’s performance was far from the ferocious force that once dominated the sport.

The man who became the youngest heavyweight champion in history was a mere shadow of his former self.

And despite the heavy hype surrounding this spectacle, what transpired was a slow, one-sided affair that left many questioning whether this fight should ever have been sanctioned in the first place.

A Victory Over a Legend, or a Tarnished Legacy?

Jake Paul bows to Mike Tyson after their fight in Texas. Photo | X

Jake Paul boasts a record of 11-1 as a professional boxer, despite his little formal boxing experience.

The 27-year-old is younger, more athletic, and more conditioned than Tyson, who had last fought professionally in 2005.

From the start, Paul’s speed, agility, and ring awareness proved too much for Tyson, who struggled to keep up.

The bout, consisting of two-minute rounds, saw Paul controlling the tempo with ease. Tyson, laboring with age and apparent injuries—he wore a knee brace on his right leg—could not match Paul’s pace.

Though Tyson did land a few glancing punches in the opening rounds, including a right hand that stunned Paul briefly in the first, he was mostly ineffective after that.

By the third round, Paul wobbled Tyson with a clean left hook, and from there, it was all downhill for the 58-year-old.

Fans who had eagerly awaited Tyson’s return to the ring were quick to grow disillusioned.

By the seventh round, the atmosphere in the stadium was one of palpable disappointment, with boos ringing out as Tyson continued to struggle against a man 31 years his junior.

By the end of the fight, a sizable number of fans had already left the venue, unwilling to wait for the inevitable announcement of Paul’s victory.

The judges scored the fight 80-72, 79-73, and 79-73, all in favor of Jake Paul—an unsurprising outcome considering Tyson landed a mere 18 punches over the course of the eight-round bout, compared to Paul’s 78.

An Awkward Post-Fight Encounter

In an uncomfortable moment following the final bell, Tyson, clearly struggling with the reality of his performance, called out Paul’s brother Logan, suggesting he might step back into the ring once more.

Tyson’s loss to Kevin McBride in 2005, which led to his first retirement, has been widely seen as the point when the fighter’s heart was no longer in the sport. Friday’s fight only reaffirmed that sentiment.

“Logan, if you want to fight, I’ll fight you,” Tyson said in a moment that left fans and commentators alike shaking their heads.

The 58-year-old’s insistence on returning to the ring, even after such a lopsided defeat, only added to the sense of absurdity surrounding the fight.

Boxing’s Dark Side: A Sad End for Tyson

The event saw a troubling trend of aging fighters being lured back into the ring for one last payday.

Tyson, who was once feared in the ring, looked vulnerable and frail against a man who, while still relatively inexperienced, was simply in better physical condition.

For Paul, the victory adds another notch to his controversial boxing career and boost his records.