Ahead of the boxing match between former heavyweight champion Mike Tyson and YouTuber and social media influencer Jake Paul, several U.S. states have restricted betting on the event.
The fight, which will be held at AT&T Stadium in Texas in front of 80,000 fans, has modified rules that differ from those of professional bouts.
Tyson and Paul will fight across eight two-minute rounds wearing 140-ounce gloves. Professional boxing matches see athletes wear 100-ounce gloves and fight in 10 or more three-minute rounds. The Texas Department of Licensing and Regulation professionally sanctioned the fight.
The New York State Gaming Commission revealed that sportsbooks were not permitted to post Jake Paul vs. Mike Tyson odds on the event due to its non-traditional format. The Colorado Limited Gaming Control Commission and Pennsylvania Gaming Control Board (PGCB) cited that neither fighter is professionally ranked when explaining the limitations on betting, with the PGCB also referencing the short number of rounds.
“Given the totality of factors, the decision was made in the best interest of the betting public not to permit wagering in Pennsylvania,” a Pennsylvania official said.
“We just consider it an untraditional boxing event that’s more of an exhibition,” PGCB spokesperson Richard McGarvey said to USA Today.
The other states to prohibit betting on the event are Kentucky, Louisiana, and Vermont.
Massachusetts Permits Tyson-Paul Betting
These states weren’t the only ones considering limiting betting on the Tyson-Paul fight. The Massachusetts Gaming Commission (MGC) held a consultation on whether to prohibit these bets. The MGC considered the models that other U.S. states that allow sports betting are using to make a decision.
None of the five commissioners made a motion to vote on blocking the betting marketing,
“We talk about the illegal market and what drives folks to the illegal market. I think if we did ban this, especially as it falls currently under our rules today as approved … we would only be potentially moving people in Massachusetts to the illegal market on this fight,” MGC chairman Jordan Maynard said.
Biggest Fight in U.S. Betting History
The Tyson-Paul fight has attracted considerable attention from U.S. bettors, even though it is not permitted in many of the biggest U.S. betting markets. Caesars Entertainment revealed that a man in Nevada had placed a $25,000 bet on Tyson to win the fight. A Nevada Gaming Commission spokesperson has said the fight passes the state’s three-pronged requirements to be a legal betting event.
Meanwhile, Paul has always been a big draw for U.S. sportsbooks, with six of his fights ranking in BetMGM’s 25 biggest by sports betting handle. BetMGM is anticipating this will be its biggest betting handle boxing event in history.
At the very least, Paul agreed to a $40 million bet on himself with undercard boxer Katie Taylor during a pre-fight news conference.
