Trader Talk: Record Betting Numbers for Tyson-Paul

It was difficult to watch, for sure, but the Mike Tyson-Jake Paul fight on Friday night drew record betting numbers.

Paul, 27, defeated the 58-year-old Tyson in an eight-round unanimous decision, broadcast on Netflix, with Tyson reportedly taking home $20 million for his efforts, Paul $40 million.

888: Most Betting Traction in Canada

“We had a decent uptick in boxing actives for the bout,” said Oliver Vickers, a trader with 888 Sport. “The majority of tickets were on Tyson. We got the most traction from Canada, followed by the UK. The majority of the cash was on Bout betting with some moderate interest on rounds and method of victory markets.”

Results were more dramatic at BetMGM. They are reporting that Paul-Tyson was the most bet combat sport (boxing and mixed martial arts) in BetMGM history.

Record Night for BetMGM

Paul winning was a good outcome for the sportsbook,” said Alex Rella, senior trader, BetMGM.

More specifically, the fight generated three times the bets, four times the handle than any other combat event in BetMGM history.

Most bet (tickets) props were Tyson by KO/TKO or DQ (+250), Tyson on points (+1100), and Tyson to win in Round 1 (+1400).

Same deal at DraftKings, according to this post on X: “The Tyson vs. Paul fight shattered records, becoming the most bet boxing match of all time on DraftKings Sportsbook with 3.5x more bets & handle than the previous record-holder, Gervonta Davis vs. Ryan Garcia.”

DraftKings tells us that most bet props were Tyson by KO/TKO/DQ, Paul by KO/TKO/DQ, and Tyson to Win in Round 1.

Marketing Con

According to Terry Dugan, Vice President at BetRivers: “The Jake Paul versus Mike Tyson bout was the most wagered-on (money) and second most popular (tickets) boxing match in the history of BetRivers Online Sportsbook. BetRivers took more money on Jake Paul versus Mike Tyson as it did on the next four most wagered-on bouts of 2024 combined.”

It’s tough to get perspective on Tyson’s drawing power on the betting front, since his heyday in the ring came long before sports betting beyond Nevada was declared legal in 2018. At BetMGM, going into the fight, despite being at +180, Tyson generated 67% of tickets and 53% of handle.

Dave Portnoy from Barstool Sports, who bets a lot on sports, said yesterday he thought the fight was a marketing con job.

“I think Jake Paul is the greatest marketer of our generation,” he said. “If this wasn’t free, I would not have bought it. Where people lost their minds was on Tyson. Tyson was bad at the end of his career 30 years ago. He put a one-second clip of himself out there (training), and people go, it’s a marker. Everyone who thought Mike Tyson had a chance – stupid.”

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