Mike Tyson and Floyd Mayweather have said they will square off in an exhibition match in 2026, in a meeting of two boxing legends.
The unexpected news broke late on Thursday (4 September) in the US, with Tyson, 59, sharing a poster depicting his face alongside that of Mayweather, 48.
The Instagram post was captioned, “Coming soon,” while the poster itself read: “Legend vs legend, 2026, signed. Special exhibition, live, worldwide broadcast.”
Both Mike Tyson Promotions and Floyd Mayweather Promotions were listed on the poster, as was the company Fight Sports. Meanwhile, a press release said CSI Sports and Fight Sports are organising the event.
Here’s everything we know so far…
When and where will the fight take place?
The press release, mentioned above, said the fight will take place in “spring 2026”, with a specific date and location “to be determined”.
Where can fans watch it?
No broadcaster has yet been announced, although Netflix – which aired Tyson’s November fight with YouTuber Jake Paul – will likely be among the frontrunners.
That said, CSI Sports announced earlier on Thursday that John Skipper, Mark Taffet and Chris DeBlasio had joined its leadership team. Skipper previously worked with ESPN and DAZN, Taffet with HBO, and DeBlasio with Showtime, so any one of those broadcasters could theoretically be involved.
Brothers Richard and Craig Miele, founders of CSI Sports and Fight Sports, said: “The event itself will be in a world-class venue and be presented to a global audience with new in-ring technology elements that will reshape how boxing is presented, and scoring is achieved for years to come.”
What have the fighters said?
Former world heavyweight champion Tyson said: “When CSI came to me about stepping in the ring with Floyd Mayweather, I thought, ‘No way this happens,’ but Floyd said ‘yes’.
Enjoy 185+ fights a year on DAZN, the Global Home of Boxing
Never miss a fight from top promoters. Watch on your devices anywhere, anytime.
Buy Now
ADVERTISEMENT. If you sign up to this service we will earn commission. This revenue helps to fund journalism across The Independent.
Enjoy 185+ fights a year on DAZN, the Global Home of Boxing
Never miss a fight from top promoters. Watch on your devices anywhere, anytime.
Buy Now
ADVERTISEMENT. If you sign up to this service we will earn commission. This revenue helps to fund journalism across The Independent.
“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. I still can’t believe Floyd wants to really do this. It’s going to be detrimental to his health, but he wants to do it, so it’s signed and it’s happening.”
Mayweather, a former five-weight champion who retired unbeaten, said: “I’ve been doing this for 30 years, and there hasn’t been a single fighter that can tarnish my legacy.
“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.”
What will the rules be?
As this is set to be an exhibition bout, it is unlikely that either fighter will try to knock out the other – although Mayweather has stopped exhibition opponents before (see below). Furthermore, exhibition fights usually have no official winner if they go the distance, and they are not counted on a boxer’s professional record.
It is unclear how many rounds Tyson vs Mayweather will be, or how long each round will be, but Tyson’s fight with Paul consisted of eight two-minute rounds, as did Mayweather’s most-recent fight – a rematch with John Gotti III.
It could also be that the pair wear larger-than-usual gloves; although Tyson vs Paul was a professional contest, not an exhibition, each man wore 14oz gloves – bigger than the 10oz gloves that fighters of their size would usually wear. Mayweather often wore 8oz gloves during his career, so look out for the glove size in Tyson vs Mayweather.
When did each man last fight?
As mentioned above, Tyson fought YouTuber-turned-boxer Paul in November, going the distance with the 28-year-old in a professional contest at AT&T Stadium in Dallas, Texas. Paul won a decision against “Iron Mike”, who appeared tentative in his first fight since a 2020 exhibition with Roy Jones Jr.
Tyson previously retired as a professional in 2005, after suffering a knockout loss to Kevin McBride. That defeat and the loss to Paul left the American’s record at 50-7, including 44 knockout wins.
Meanwhile, Mayweather first retired as a professional in 2015 but fought once more in that capacity in 2017, when he boxed then-UFC champion Conor McGregor. The American (50-0, 27 KOs) stopped McGregor before beginning a phase of exhibition bouts in 2018.
In the first of those fights, he stopped kickboxer Tenshin Nasukawa in the first round, while – among other contests – he later went the distance with YouTuber Logan Paul, stopped YouTuber Deji, and twice boxed John Gotti III, the son and grandson of mafiosi Gotti II and Gotti I respectively.
His first fight with Gotti III, in 2023, was thrown out due to excessive trash talk, which ignited a brawl. Their 2024 rematch then went the distance.
Read the full article here
