Published on: November 19, 2024, 08:34h.
Last updated on: November 19, 2024, 08:36h.
It was challenging to witness, undoubtedly, but the showdown between Mike Tyson and Jake Paul on Friday night drew unprecedented betting figures.
Paul, aged 27, emerged victorious over the 58-year-old Tyson in an eight-round unanimous decision, which was aired on Netflix. Tyson reportedly earned $20 million for his participation, while Paul pocketed $40 million.
888: Leading Betting Interest in Canada
“We witnessed a noticeable surge in boxing activities for the match,” stated Oliver Vickers, a trader at 888 Sport. “The majority of bets were placed on Tyson. Canada provided the most engagement, followed by the UK. The main focus was on Bout betting, with some interest in rounds and methods of victory markets.”
Over at BetMGM, results were even more outstanding. They reported that the Paul-Tyson fight was their most heavily bet-on combat sport (boxing and mixed martial arts) event in BetMGM’s history.
Historic Night for BetMGM
Paul’s victory proved to be profitable for the sportsbook,” mentioned Alex Rella, senior trader at BetMGM.
Specifically, this event generated triple the number of bets and quadruple the handle compared to any other combat event in BetMGM’s history.
The most popular props (betting tickets) were Tyson by KO/TKO or DQ (+250), Tyson on points (+1100), and Tyson to win in Round 1 (+1400).
A similar trend was observed at DraftKings, as per an update on X: “The Tyson vs. Paul fight broke records, emerging as the most bet-on boxing match in DraftKings Sportsbook history with 3.5x more bets & handle than the previous record-holder, Gervonta Davis vs. Ryan Garcia.”
DraftKings highlighted that the top prop bets included Tyson by KO/TKO/DQ, Paul by KO/TKO/DQ, and Tyson to Win in Round 1.
Marketing Strategy
According to Terry Dugan, Vice President at BetRivers: “The Jake Paul versus Mike Tyson match attracted the most bets (money) and was the second most popular (tickets) boxing event in the history of BetRivers Online Sportsbook. BetRivers received more wagers on Jake Paul versus Mike Tyson than the next four most bet-on bouts of 2024 combined.”
It’s challenging to gauge Tyson’s betting appeal, considering his prime boxing days were before the widespread legalization of sports betting outside Nevada in 2018. At BetMGM, leading up to the bout, despite being at +180, Tyson garnered 67% of the bets and 53% of the handle.
Dave Portnoy from Barstool Sports, a frequent bettor, expressed his skepticism about the fight being a marketing ploy.
“I believe Jake Paul is an exceptional marketer of our era,” he remarked. “If this wasn’t free, I wouldn’t have purchased it. The hype around Tyson was baseless. Tyson was past his prime 30 years ago. He posted a brief training clip, and people fell for it thinking it was significant. Anyone who believed Mike Tyson had a chance – foolish.”