Jake Paul won a unanimous decision victory against former heavyweight champion Mike Tyson. Although it was a decisive win for Paul, the fight itself might not have been the most exciting. Many were curious to see how the YouTube star would fare against the 58-year-old Tyson.
The bout attracted record-breaking betting, becoming the most heavily wagered boxing or mixed martial arts fight in BetMGM‘s history. The sportsbook took three times the number of bets and four times the money of any combat sport in BetMGM’s history.
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“We knew there would be tremendous interest in the fight, as the betting suggested it was a generational matchup in customer demographics,” said Craig Mucklow, vice president of trading at Caesars Sportsbook.
“Those old enough to remember a prime Mike Tyson got to live the nostalgia one last time, while those not old enough to know Iron Mike were firmly on the Jake Paul side of the counter.”
The volume of bets placed on the fight was comparable to what’s typically seen for a Monday Night Football game, according to Craig Mucklow, vice president of trading at Caesars Sportsbook.
DraftKings also reported the fight as their most bet boxing match ever.“The bettors were yearning for Tyson to return to the ring even at 58 years old, and wanted to be a part of this moment with one of the icons of the sport,” said Johnny Avello, DraftKings sports operations director.
“We’ll see who Jake Paul fights next, but his matches have proven to create immense buzz and unprecedented action on our platforms.”
It’s difficult to compare the betting handle on this fight to historical fights that took place before the widespread legalisation of sports betting in the United States.Many of Tyson’s biggest fights happened when sports betting was only legal in Nevada.However, the fight, held at AT&T Stadium in Arlington, Texas, undoubtedly attracted a massive amount of wagers.
BetMGM reported that most bets were proposition bets, with many betting on Tyson to win by knockout, decision, or first-round knockout.
Though Paul was a -175 favourite, 67% of the tickets and 53% of the money at BetMGM was on Tyson.“Paul winning was a good outcome for the sportsbook,” said Alex Rella, senior trader at BetMGM.