Boxing is about to deliver one of its most unexpected matchups — as Mike Tyson and Floyd Mayweather Jr. have agreed to step into the ring for an exhibition fight next spring, as relayed by CSI Sports/Fight Sports.
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Details on the date, location and broadcast partner are still to come, but the event already promises to be massive.
Mayweather, 50-0 as a professional, wasted little time framing the fight as another chance to add to his legend.
"I've been doing this for 30 years, and there hasn't been a single fighter that can tarnish my legacy," Mayweather, 48, said in a statement. "You already know that if I am going to do something, it's going to be big and it's going to be legendary. I'm the best in the business of boxing. This exhibition will give the fans what they want."
Tyson, 59, last fought Jake Paul in November 2024 in a Netflix event that drew 65 million concurrent viewers, making it the most-streamed sporting event ever.
Though Tyson dropped a unanimous decision in his first professional fight in nearly 20 years, the spectacle proved there is still massive demand to watch him fight.
"When CSI came to me about stepping in the ring with Floyd Mayweather, I thought, 'No way this happens,' but Floyd said yes," Tyson told ESPN. "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."
CSI Sports co-founders Richard and Craig Miele said the fight will "break every broadcast, streaming and economic record set by Mike Tyson in 2024," with a worldwide promotional campaign and "new in-ring technology elements" designed to reshape how boxing is presented.
Rules for the bout, including weight and number of rounds, will be announced later.
