- Katie Taylor backed Mike Tyson to beat Jake Paul at their final press conference
- Paul confronted Taylor and bet his entire purse with her that he will beat Tyson
- Paul is expected to earn £31m from fighting Tyson on Friday night in Texas
Jake Paul put his money where his mouth is and bet his entire purse with Katie Taylor that he will beat Mike Tyson when they finally face each other on Friday.
Paul and Tyson are due to square off in a fight streamed live on Netflix, and they went head to head at their final press conference on Wednesday night.
In what was a largely tame affair, the temperature in the room suddenly rose when the undercard fighters were asked to pick who would win the main event – and the majority tipped Tyson.
Paul was having none of it and got to his feet to confront those backing ‘Iron Mike’ to get the better of him.
One Tyson backer was Irish icon Taylor, who will face Amanda Serrano – a fighter promoted by Paul – in Friday’s co-main event.
Jake Paul bet his entire purse with Katie Taylor that he will beat Mike Tyson
Paul is due to earn £31m from fighting Tyson on Friday night and is supremely confident he will win
Taylor has her own fight against Amanda Serrano – who is promoted by Paul – on Friday
Paul asked Taylor: ‘How much do you want to bet?’
Taylor appeared a little hesitant before responding: ‘Do you want to bet your purse?’
Without a pause, Paul agreed as he confirmed: ‘Yeah, let’s bet the purse. Deal,’ before shaking Taylor’s hand.
Paul is expected to earn $40m (£31m) from fighting Tyson in what is set to be the biggest payday of his career.
But losing to the 58-year-old boxing legend would damage his in-ring career prospects, and could be disastrous for his bank balance if he sticks to his bet with Taylor.
Paul is the favourite to emerge victorious, with many expecting him to be too fresh for Tyson given that he is 31 years his junior.
But Tyson is adamant that he will roll back the years to shock the world in his first professional bout in almost two decades.
Tyson maintained his cool for the majority of Wednesday’s press conference, but did appear irritated when the prospect of losing was brought up by one reporter.
‘I will not lose,’ he shot back. Taylor will hope he is a man of his word.
