In 2017, the 48-year-old former boxing champion retired from professional prize fighting undefeated at 50-0.

Mayweather’s first official bout against a to-be-named opponent is set for this summer as part of an exclusive agreement with CSI Sports/Fight Sports, according to a release sent out Friday afternoon. The same group is also promoting his exhibition match against the 59-year-old Tyson.

“I still have what it takes to set more records in the sport of boxing — from my upcoming Mike Tyson event to my next professional fight afterwards — no one will generate a bigger gate, have a larger global broadcast audience and generate more money with each event — then (sic) my events. And I plan to keep doing it with my global media partner, CSI Sports/Fight Sports,” Mayweather said in a statement included in the release.

A 15-time world champion across five weight classes, Mayweather (50-0, 27 KOs) is regarded as one of the greatest pound-for-pound fighters in the sport’s history. His last professional fight came in March 2017, when he beat Conor McGregor via a technical knockout.

Mayweather has fought in eight exhibition matches since, the last one coming against John Gotti III — the grandson of infamous mob boss John Gotti — in Mexico City in August 2024. He also faced social media influencer Logan Paul in 2021.

This latest news comes just a few weeks after Mayweather filed a lawsuit against Showtime Networks and the former president of Showtime Sports, accusing the company of helping facilitate a fraud scheme that deprived him of roughly $340 million in earnings.

The exhibition match vs. Tyson was announced in early September, although a date and venue have yet to be revealed months later. The release announcing Mayweather’s return to the pro ranks referenced a “Spring 2026” exhibition vs. Tyson.

In September, it was announced that Tyson and Mayweather would fight in spring 2026, though no location or date was announced.

And while those details are still not official, Tyson addressed the matter while speaking at a live event last week, An Experience With Mike Tyson.

“Floyd Mayweather, can you believe that?” said the former world heavyweight champion, 59. “It’s gonna be in March, and it’s gonna be in Africa.

“This is gonna be incredible, it’s gonna break all the records. It’s gonna be one of the biggest events of this year’s sport.”

Mayweather last fought in November 2024, facing YouTuber-turned-boxer Jake Paul in an eight-round professional contest and losing on points. That bout marked Tyson’s first outing since an exhibition against fellow boxing icon Roy Jones Jr in 2020, and it was his pro fight since 2005.

Meanwhile, Mayweather retired in 2017 with a perfect record of 50-0, after stopping former UFC champion Conor McGregor in the latter’s boxing debut. Since then, however, the 48-year-old has competed in numerous exhibition fights.

While Mayweather vs Tyson was announced as an exhibition fight, no date, location or rules were revealed, and it even seemed that a rematch between Mayweather and Manny Pacquiao could thwart the all-American bout.

“Right now, it’s in negotiations,” Pacquiao said in October, discussing a rematch with Mayweather, who outpointed the Filipino in 2015 in the highest-grossing boxing match ever.

“It depends on whether we can understand each other,” continued Pacquiao, 46. “My people and his people [are] directly coordinating.

“I’m sure the world of boxing will be excited if the rematch will happen soon. He has his own decision, so I cannot prevent him from fighting Mike Tyson.

“[We are] almost agreeing with each other, but there are a few details we are still negotiating. Probably it will happen in Las Vegas.

“There’s also a negotiation with [former world champion Vasyl] Lomachenko for an exhibition. But the Mayweather thing that we are negotiating right now is a real fight.”

Pacquiao returned to professional boxing this summer, challenging Mario Barrios for the WBC welterweight title. Pacquiao fought the 30-year-old to a draw.

The event will be put on by CSI Sports/Fight Sports but details regarding the date, location, broadcasters and rules are yet to be announced.

Tyson, 59, is a former undisputed heavyweight champion while Mayweather, 48, retired undefeated after 50 fights, winning multiple titles across a number of weight classes.

“This fight is something neither the world nor I ever thought would or could happen. However, boxing has entered a new era of the unpredictable and this fight is as unpredictable as it gets,” said Tyson.

Tyson is competing for the first time since ending his 19-year retirement in November in a controversial defeat by Jake Paul.

He spent the entirety of his career, which yielded 50 wins from 59 fights, at heavyweight while the latter stages of Mayweather’s career were at welterweight.

Mayweather, who has won titles across five weight classes, has competed in a number of exhibition bouts since retiring in 2017 with his last outing coming against John Gotti III last August.

Formal winners are not usually declared in exhibitions and the results do not count towards either fighter’s career record.

“You already know that if I am going to do something, it’s going to be big and it’s going to be legendary,” said Mayweather.

“I’m the best in the business of boxing. This exhibition will give the fans what they want.”

Tyson, as you might expect from a man aged 58 and having not competed professionally in 19 years, was a shadow of his old self.

Paul, 27, is a boxing novice but was too young and too athletic. He kept Tyson at range, landing jabs and accurate punches in an eight-round contest of two-minute rounds.

Tyson was slow and sluggish. He received a hero’s reception before the fight, but there were huge boos as the fight drew to a close.

Some fans left before judges’ scores of 80-72, 79-73 and 79-73 were announced.

In an uncomfortable moment post-fight, Tyson, after his seventh pro loss in 57 bouts, called out Paul’s brother Logan and suggested he could fight again.

There were question marks on the legitimacy of this fight and how seriously both men would take it, but Tyson said he “came to fight”.

Both men wore heavier gloves with extra padding as part of the conditions set by the Texas commission, who sanctioned it as a pro fight – a decision which looks even more ludicrous post-fight.

Lighter gloves would have made no difference, no punches thrown even came close to a knockout.

Tyson landed only 18 punches in the entire fight, compared to Paul’s 78.

Paul made his celebrity name by posting prank videos online and amassing a social media following of 70 million before venturing into boxing.

He wins his 11th pro fight, having lost to Tommy Fury last year, and once again reiterated his desire to fight Mexican superstar Saul ‘Canelo’ Alvarez.

“He knows he wants a payday so he knows where the money is at,” Paul said.

The former heavyweight champion, 57, became nauseous and dizzy, forcing flight staff to ask passengers if there was a doctor on board to provide assistance.

Paramedics boarded the plane, which had already been delayed by two hours in Miami because of the heat, once it touched down in Los Angeles to give treatment.

It comes just two months before the boxing legend is due to fight YouTuber-turned-boxer Jake Paul in Arlington.

‘Thankfully Mr. Tyson is doing great,’ his representatives told The New York Post.

‘He became nauseous and dizzy due to an ulcer flare up 30 minutes before landing.

‘He is appreciative to the medical staff that were there to help him.’

Typical symptoms of an ulcer flare up include nausea and vomiting, bloating, belching and gas pain, as well as chest pain and fatigue.

It comes after In Touch first revealed on Monday morning that Tyson ‘had some kind of medical emergency on the plane and paramedics boarded’.

Sources claim the cabin crew ‘issued an announcement asking for a doctor 30 minutes before landing and the message even came on everyone’s screens.’

‘He was in first class, but we were an exit row,’ an eyewitness added.

‘They asked us to stay on the plane and landed so paramedics could enter. [The stewardess] said something like, “He’s a really important passenger so we wanna make sure he’s OK.” I knew it was him, but I just mouthed the words “Mike Tyson” and she nodded her head yes.’

According to an affidavit filed in Albany County, New York, the alleged victim said she met Tyson at a nightclub and was invited into his limousine.

She was under the assumption he would take her and another individual to a party. While driving to the location of the party, Tyson attempted to kiss the victim, which she denied, before he allegedly raped her.

“I met Mike Tyson in the early 1990s at a dance club called Septembers,” the affidavit read. “My friend and I were hanging out with him and his limousine driver. Tyson told us about a party and asked us to join him. My friend was going to drop off her car and Tyson said he would pick her up in the limousine.”

“He then pulled my pants off and violently raped me,” the lawsuit stated. “As a result of Tyson’s rape, I suffered and continue to suffer from physical, psychological, and emotional injury.”

The charges were filed under New York’s new Adult Survivors Act, which gives survivors of sexual abuse a one-year window to file complaints that would otherwise be prevented by the statute of limitations.

The unidentified victim is seeking $5 million in damages, as she has “been unable to maintain and/or develop healthy relationships with men or anyone in general” and has “experienced extreme emotional suffering including but not limited to nightmares, panic attacks and flashbacks.” 

Back in February 1992, Tyson was convicted of rape in Indianapolis. He was sentenced to six years in prison and was released on parole after three years.

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During a recent interview with Newsmax TV, Tyson addressed his “only health problem” after the former heavyweight champion was photographed in a wheelchair at Miami International Airport last month.

“I have sciatica every now and then, it flares up,” he told the outlet, per DailyMail. “When it flares up, I can’t even talk! Thank God it’s the only health problem I have.”

Sciatica is pain that travels along the sciatic nerve, which runs from the lower back down one or both legs to the feet.

Tyson said he is feeling “splendid now,” and that “everybody in my house is truly blessed and we’re all very grateful for whatever we have.”

Last month, the boxing legend raised concern amongst fans when he was seen in a wheelchair at the airport in Miami. The 56-year-old, who was holding a walking stick in his lap at the time, posed for selfies with fans as he was wheeled through the terminal by an airport employee.

The sighting came three weeks after Tyson was seen moving gingerly while out in New York City.

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Tyson appeared to be moving well at the U.S. Open earlier this month, where he attended Serena Williams’ last match at Arthur Ashe stadium in Flushing Meadows.

In July, Tyson worried some fans when he confessed that he believes his “expiration date” is soon approaching.

“We’re all gonna die one day, of course,” Tyson said on the “Hotboxin’” podcast. “Then, when I look in the mirror, I see those little spots on my face, I say, ‘Wow. That means my expiration date is coming close, really soon.’”

The support Tyson receives from his fans is something he doesn’t take for granted.

“I feel like I’m overrated. No one deserves this much love,” he told The Post in an interview earlier this month while at the new Apothecarium cannabis dispensary in Lodi, NJ.

Tyson, who called it a career in 2005, has since immersed himself in the cannabis business.

Last month, fans were left concerned over the former heavyweight champion’s health after pictures emerged of him at an airport wheelchair-bound. There were also snaps of Tyson needing the help of a walking stick.

He has since spoken out on speculation surrounding his health, speaking to Newsmax he said “I have sciatica every now and then, it flares up.”

“When it flares up, I can’t even talk! Thank God it’s the only health problem I have. I’m splendid now. Everybody in my house is truly blessed and we’re all very grateful for whatever we have.”

The condition has serious impacts on the nervous system in the body, particularly the nerve endings affecting the back. After a lifetime spent in the ring, it appears that it is starting to take a toll on his health.

Iron Mike called time on his heavyweight career in 2005 after back problems started to impact his performance in the ring. And the issues have appeared to rear its head once again, this time leaving him in a wheelchair and unable to speak.

It has led to real concerns from his fans that his health is under serious threat. It was not long ago when speaking on his Hotboxin’ podcast that he does not reckon he has long left to live.

“We’re all gonna die one day of course. Then, when I look in the mirror, I see those little spots on my face,” he said. “I say, ‘Wow. That means my expiration date is coming close, really soon.'”

While Tyson might have retired from boxing 17 years ago, he returned to the ring in 2020 when he took on Roy Jones Jr in an exhibition fight. The clash ended in a draw and ultimately a disappointment, though.

During his professional career, Iron Mike was renowned for his knockout punches. His speed and ferocity shook the heavyweight division, obliterating the likes of Larry Holmes, Frank Bruno and Trevor Berbick.

But his life out of the ring also drew unwarranted attention going to prison in 1992 for rape, as well as becoming addicted to drugs such as cocaine. Some 30 years on, Tyson has since changed his life, converting to Islam and growing his own marijuana.

Speaking on his podcast, ‘Hotboxin’ with Mike Tyson,’ the former heavyweight champion, 56, told trauma and addiction therapist Sean McFarland he feels his time is almost up.

“We are all gonna die one day, of course,” Tyson said.

“Then, when I look in the mirror, I see those little spots on my face, I say, ‘Wow. That means my expiration date is coming close, really soon’.”

In what was a morbid conversation, Tyson went onto state ‘money doesn’t mean s*** to me’ and that it offers a false sense of security.

“I always tell people — they think money’s gonna make them happy, they’ve never had money before — when you have a lot of money, you can’t expect nobody to love you,” he added.

“You believe that you’re invincible when you have a lot of money, which isn’t true.”

Tyson also said he has conversations with his third wife Lakiha Spicer, after she stated money will provide her with long term security when he dies.

“What (exactly) is security?” he asked.

“I don’t know. When you put money in your bank and you get a cheque every week and you can live for the rest of your life, is that security? 

“It doesn’t mean you won’t catch a disease, or get hit by a car. Can money secure you when you jump off a bridge?”

Tyson had his first professional bout in 1985, beating Hector Mercedes aged just 18.

‘Iron Mike’ quickly gained a reputation for his ferocious and intimidating style and was the first heavyweight boxer to simultaneously hold the WBA, WBC and IBF titles, – as well as being the only heavyweight fighter to unify them in succession.

He served three years in jail for the rape of teenager Desiree Washington in July of 1991 and declared himself bankrupt in 2003 – despite earning over $30million for several of his fights and $300million across his career.

Tyson is also infamous for biting the ear of Evander Holyfield in their June 1997 bout.

The chomp was severe enough to sever a piece of Holyfield’s right ear, which was found on the ring floor after the fight in Las Vegas.

In 1992 he went to jail when he was accused by Desiree Washington, a Miss Black America contestant, of rape, Tyson denied the accusations, even so, he was imprisoned in the Indiana Youth Center. His sentence was 10 years, six in prison and four on probation, but because of his good behavior he was in prison for only three years. He was released in 1995.

Many thought the three years he spent in prison would have been very difficult because he was at the top of his career but he apparently had a better time than expected.

Tyson revealed that he earned the inmates’ respect after rapper Tupac Shakur visited him in jail.

“They respected [Tupac], soon as he came in the room, they started applauding,” Tyson told NORE and DJ EFN.

In a new interview with “The Pivot Podcast” where he looked relaxed, while smoking a marijuana cigarette, Tyson said:

“I had the best three years of my life in prison,” said Tyson. “I had peace. That money doesn’t mean anything if you don’t have your peace, your stability and your balance. You need your sanity to dictate any part of life.

“I had good food, everybody was nice to me, they treated me well.”

“I would run around the yard 8 or 9 miles and in the evenings I would jump for four hours, in my cell. Everybody treated me good in jail, they were afraid of me, but I was always a good person.”

Footage obtained by TMZ shows a passenger sitting behind Tyson and attempting to talk to him. The outlet claims Tyson, 55, was initially happy to talk to the man and pose for a selfie before the pair began to argue.

Tyson, who made his ring comeback against Roy Jones Jr in 2020, reportedly told the man to leave him alone. When he wouldn’t, the footage appears to show Tyson repeatedly landing blows on the man who was left with blood on the right hand side of his face.

yson reportedly walked off the flight – which was bound for Florida – while his alleged victim received medical attention before reporting the incident to the police. Neither Tyson nor the police have commented on the alleged incident.

A source close to Tyson alleged to TMZ that his alleged victim was “extremely intoxicated” and was repeatedly provoked the retired fighter. Tyson, who was the undisputed heavyweight world champion in his prime, last fought competitively in 2005 but returned in an exhibition against Jones Jr. The bout was not declared a draw after six rounds.

yson reportedly walked off the flight – which was bound for Florida – while his alleged victim received medical attention before reporting the incident to the police. Neither Tyson nor the police have commented on the alleged incident.

A source close to Tyson alleged to TMZ that his alleged victim was “extremely intoxicated” and was repeatedly provoked the retired fighter.

Tyson, who was the undisputed heavyweight world champion in his prime, last fought competitively in 2005 but returned in an exhibition against Jones Jr. The bout was not declared a draw after six rounds.

Agriculture Minister Lobin Low sent a letter to Tyson inviting him to take up the role, and said legalisation in Malawi had created new opportunities.

Tyson, a former world heavyweight champion, is an entrepreneur and has invested in a cannabis farm in the US.

But the move has been criticised by some as the former boxer was imprisoned for sex offences in the 1990s.

“Malawi may not go it alone as the industry is complex [and requires] collaboration. I would therefore like to appoint you, Mr Mike Tyson, as Malawi’s Cannabis Branch ambassador,” Mr Lowe wrote.

The United States Cannabis Association was facilitating the deal with Tyson, the agriculture ministry said.

The head of its Malawi branch, Wezi Ngalamila, told the BBC the former boxer had accepted the invitation and plans were under way for him to visit the country.

“Tyson will be working with us,” she said.

Malawi legalised the growing and processing of cannabis for medicinal use last year, but stopped short of legalising it for personal use.

The country’s agriculture ministry has encouraged farmers to grow cannabis for medicinal purposes as well as hemp for industrial use.

The government hopes Mr Tyson’s backing will “rope in some investors and even potential buyers”, ministry spokesman Gracian Lungu told the AFP news agency.

A locally grown variety of cannabis – Malawi gold – is renowned by recreational users across the world.

Tyson has said smoking cannabis helped improve his mental health and turn his life around. Some studies, however, have suggested smoking potent cannabis can increase your risk of serious mental illness.

The Centre for Public Accountability, a Malawian civil society group, criticised the latest move due to Tyson’s previous crimes.

The former boxer was jailed in 1992 after being convicted of rape in Indiana. He was released in 1995 after serving less than three years of his sentence.

“The CPA is failing to comprehend why Malawi would want to have a convicted rapist as its brand ambassador, more especially, at this time, when efforts to curb violence against women are part of the government agenda,” the group’s acting director, Kondwani Munthali, said in a statement.

The heavyweight boxing champion, dubbed Iron Mike, was a “wreck” when he first tried the psychedelic drug, which is collected from the Bufo Alvarius amphibian species and then dried, before being turned into a crystal that can be smoked – and the trip taught him an important lesson.

“I ‘died’ during my first trip. In my trips I’ve seen that death is beautiful. Life and death both have to be beautiful, but death has a bad rep,” he told The New York Post at Wonderland, a conference in Miami, Florida, dedicated to psychedelics, micro-dosing and medicine.

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“The toad has taught me that I’m not going to be here forever. There’s an expiration date.”

Tyson puffed away on the venom after being dared to try it, figuring he had nothing to lose.

The former heavyweight champ, famous for delivering a knockout punch, has been selling cannabis products since 2016 through his Tyson Holistic label that are as potent as one of his uppercuts.

Tyson, 54, is believed to earn around £500,000-per-month through his business that offers premium marijuana strains, edibles and extracts, and that’s just the tip of the iceberg.

‘Iron Mike’ is building a 418-acre weed-themed holiday resort he hopes will be home to a music festival to rival Coachella, as well as the world’s longest lazy river.

And aside from a luxury hotel and the lure of ‘glamping’ tents, there will be a Tyson University on site that will aim to teach cannabis cultivation tips to wannabe farmers.

And he is now launching a NEW company in the trade, called Tyson 2.0.

According to Forbes it will be “a step up from Iron Mike’s first cannabis brand, offering a wider array of products including everything from his personal favourite, flower, to concentrates, edibles, beverages, and pre-rolls”.

SENSATIONAL BOXING RETURN

Tyson will work as the company’s chief brand officer.

After years of substance abuse with drugs including cocaine, Tyson – who made a sensation return to boxing with an exhibition draw against Roy Jones Jr last November – found comfort in marijuana, which is legal in California.

It made him, as he’s the first to admit, a much calmer person.

It encouraged him to partner up with businessman Rob Hickman five years ago, who pointed out what a difference weed has made to the ex-boxer’s life.

“It changed his life,” he told GQ. “He’s the perfect person.”

Buoyed by his discovery, Tyson also knew if it could aid him, then others would see the benefits too.

In the prime of his career, Mr Tyson was arrested for raping an 18-year-old beauty pageant contestant. Although he maintained his innocence, he was convicted in 1992 and sentenced to six years in prison.

However, he spent less than three years at the Indiana Youth Centre before being released in 1995. He had also gotten a fourth year added to it because of his bad behavior while locked up.

Speaking about his life in prison, he said he was supposed to spend four years and needed to pass the GED (General Educational Development) in order to reduce the term, so he helped himself by dating the counselor.

He said: “I got in trouble like the first six months and stuff, cursing, getting written up. And then by that time, I got the hang of the place. ‘Hey, I know how to do this.’ Next thing you know, I’m dating one of the counsel workers now, she’s letting me have sex with her now.”

According to Mr Tyson, he got another year tacked onto his sentence because he was so hard to deal with initially.

“So I’m going good. But the first six months I was getting write-ups, I have to pay that year back. … I’m like a star pupil prisoner. Trusty, everything. Then, ‘Hey Mike, remember the first six months you were a prick?’ Boom. They gave me another year.”

Desperate to shave the year off of his sentence, he found out that he could reduce his time if he got his GED. The high school dropout began courting a prison counselor in order to get her to pass him.

“So by passing the GED they took that year away,” Tyson said, adding, “So I flunked the f*cking GED … and got mad, and so I had to start dating this counselor and stuff, giving her money and doing really some nasty stuff to her, and she let me pass this test.”

As he expected, the prison took the year off of Tyson’s sentence and he was able to go home in three years.

Looking back on the incident, Tyson admitted that he should’ve been in prison for a lot longer. He was initially slapped with over 50 years.

The series, titled simply ‘Tyson’ is not currently set up at a network or streaming service, but will no doubt find one quickly given the names attached to it already. 

Antoine Fuqua is onboard to direct and executive produce via Fuqua Films, with Martin Scorsese also executive producing via Sikelia Productions.

The series would span the whole of Tyson’s life.

“I have been looking to tell my story for quite some time,” Tyson said. “With the recent launch of Legends Only League and the excitement from fans following my return to the ring, now feels like the perfect moment. I look forward to collaborating with Martin, Antoine, Jamie, and the entire creative team to bring audiences a series that not only captures my professional and personal journey but also inspires and entertains.”

Colin Preston wrote the pilot for ‘Tyson’ and is currently working on writing the full series. Foxx will executive produce in addition to starring.

Along with Fuqua and Scorsese, Tyson and his wife, Kiki Tyson, will executive produce along with Sophie Watts and John Ryan Jr. on behalf of Tyson’s Legends Only League.

Rick Yorn of LBI Entertainment will also executive produce. Azim Spicer of Legends Only League will serve as associated producer. 

Foxx has been discussing his involvement in a Tyson project for some time, stating last year that he was deep into training for the role, though at the time it was said to be a biopic rather than a series.

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This is the second Tyson limited series announced in the past month.

Hulu previously announced that it had ordered an eight-episode limited series about the boxer, but Tyson came out strongly against that series when it was announced and said he was not involved in it.

Tyson made worldwide headlines when he became the youngest ever heavyweight champion in boxing history in 1986 at the age of 20.

He remained a major force in boxing for years and is widely considered one of the greatest heavyweight fighters of all time.

But his life outside the ring attracted perhaps even more attention, with Tyson becoming infamous for his wild exploits.

He was also accused of serious mental and physical abuse by his wife, Robin Givens, and was convicted of rape in 1992, ultimately serving less than three years in prison.

He has made a comeback of sorts in recent years, appearing in projects like ‘The Hangover’ film franchise as himself and performing in a one-man show on Broadway.

He has also been candid about his struggles with mental illness and substance abuse.

Most recently, Tyson fought an eight round exhibition fight against Roy Jones Jr. in November, which ended in a draw.

The event served as the launch of the Legends Only League.

Recall the 54-year-old previously admitted to taking recreational drugs throughout his career in his 2013 book, Undisputed Truth. 

With boxers compelled to undergo regular anti-doping checks, Tyson was using a ‘whizzinator’ to deliver his samples in order to avoid a positive result. 

A whizzinator is a strap-on prosthetic penis that lets people store clean urine so they can pass drug tests.

Speaking about his own use of the contraption, Tyson admitted he used to fill the bag with his wife’s urine, but got scared the test could return a pregnancy result and started using his daughter’s instead.

Tyson was married to Monica Turner between 1997 and 2003 at the height of his career. They have two children, son Amir and daughter Rayna.  

Asked about the use of a whizzinator, Tyson told the Hotboxin’ podcast: ‘It was awesome, man.

‘I put my baby’s urine in it. And sometimes, one time I was using my wife’s and my wife was like: “Baby, you better not hope that it comes back pregnant or something.” 

‘And I said nah, we ain’t gonna use you any more, we’re gonna use the kid. Cuz I got scared that the p*** might come back pregnant.

‘That was what I was afraid of! I guess I heard of this happening because I was afraid of that.’ 

Tyson, whose boxing career record includes 50 wins (including 44 KOs), six losses, and two no contests, is preparing for his return to the ring to take on Roy Jones Jr in an exhibition fight.

Mr Tyson will take on fellow boxing legend and former four-division world champion Roy Jones Jr. in an eight-round exhibition fight scheduled for September 12.

He had been linked to a potential fight with former rival Evander Holyfield as “Iron Mike” explored the possibility of fighting exhibition bouts for charity. One thing Mr Tyson was clear about was that he only wanted to fight legitimate boxers, not celebrities or athletes crossing over from other sports.

Jones is exactly that. As one of the greatest boxers in history, Jones began his career at 154 pounds and won titles at middleweight, super middleweight and light heavyweight before a historic move to heavyweight where he defeated John Ruiz to become heavyweight champion of the world.

Jones, 51, last fought in February 2018, picking up his fourth straight victory over middling competition. Tyson, 54, last fought in June 2011, retiring after refusing to continue after the sixth round of a fight with Kevin McBride.

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The fight will be sanctioned by the California State Athletic Commission and will air on pay-per-view and social media platform Triller. According to a press release, Triller is also creating a “ten-part docuseries featuring behind-the-scenes, pre-fight footage, releasing two episodes per week leading up to the match.”

According to a report from Yahoo! Sports’ Kevin Iole, Jones and Tyson have agreed to fight with large gloves and without the intention of trying to score a knockout. The bout is expected to take place at Dignity Health Sports Arena in Los Angeles with a full undercard as well as musical performances.

The event is attached to a recently announced Tyson venture, ‘Mike Tyson’s Legends Only League.’ A press release Wednesday stated, “Mike Tyson, and Eros Innovations have launched Mike Tyson’s Legends Only League, a next-generation sports venture that provides full support and infrastructure to the world’s greatest athletes, bringing the best of the best back to the ring, onto the court, and back on the field. The league will span live sporting events including tennis, basketball, boxing, and more.”

The involvement of several new companies, an agreement to not try for knockouts and the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic gives some pause to the idea the event will cross the finish line, or be a financial success if it does.

Jones was interviewed by Sports.ru ahead of the announcement, saying it would be “crazy” to receive an offer to fight Tyson and refuse.

“I had no intention of going back and fighting again but, for the sake of Mike Tyson, I agree to make an exception,” Jones said. “For me, this is an opportunity that I cannot refuse. Of all those who wanted to go into the ring with him, he chose me. And since he did that, how can I say no?”

The 53-year-old, looking the fittest he has in years, showed that he still possesses much of the speed and explosive power that made him the youngest heavyweight champion in boxing history.

Anthony Joshua, who currently holds the WBA, IBF, WBO, and IBO heavyweight titles, says ‘Iron Mike’ was his idol growing up and would relish his return to the sport.

“If he’s back in the ring then I would love to see it, I would definitely be one of the viewers that’s for sure,” Joshua told British GQ. “That’s the man who got me [into boxing].

“Do you know what it was with Mike, when I watched him on YouTube, I see a little kid that was 13 and I truly believe — no matter what anyone has to say about Mike Tyson now in terms of what he went through when he was fighting, some of the controversy he went through — the guy took himself from his neighborhood, which wasn’t the prettiest of scenes, up to an amateur champion, to the youngest ever world champion, to one of the most recognized faces of the sport.”

After becoming the youngest heavyweight champion ever at just 20 years old in 1986, Tyson was sent to prison for three years following a 1992 rape conviction.

‘Working out for health and wellness’

Recent reports have suggested Tyson could return to the ring in a series of exhibition fights in Australia, while Evander Holyfield — who infamously had a chunk of his ear bitten off in a fight with Tyson — admitted he would be open to a rematch.

Max Markson, who works with Australia’s leading boxing promoter Brian Amatruda, told CNN they hope to bring Tyson to Australia in 2020 or 2021 to fight high-profile names such as All Blacks star Sonny Bill Williams.

However, Rob Hickman, CEO of Tyson’s licensing & branding company Tyson Ranch, said the former world heavyweight champion is instead looking to fight in the US.

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“Mike wants to do exhibition matches in the States for the homeless and addicted in America,” he told CNN. “Mike is working out for his own health and wellness.

“It is 15 years since Tyson last fought professionally, a sad defeat to Kevin McBride, but Joshua insists the American will only view his time away from the sport as an extended absence.

“This is what we breathe, this is what we are, and especially someone like Iron Mike Tyson, that’s all that man knows,” Joshua said.

“So for everyone else it’s a comeback but for him it’s just what he does, he’s a fighter.

“So he’s probably just taken a little break but for everyone else it’s: ‘Oh my God, Mike Tyson is making a comeback’ but for Mike Tyson it’s like: ‘This is what I do, I’m a fighter by nature.’

“In my opinion, the only two faces that are recognized in boxing globally are Muhammad Ali and Mike Tyson. They’re the main faces of this sport. So from where he started to where he is now, he is my ultimate motivation.

“The reason I say is that because he’s the closest guy that was to my generation so he holds a special place in my heart.”