Mike Tyson could return to the ring in 2024 to fight the former UFC star Mark Hunt, according to reports in Australia.
Digital publication From the Stands posted on X, formerly Twitter on January 30, that an eight-round match in Saudi Arabia is “in the works” for what “looks to be December” this year.
An official announcement could be made as early as February, FTS added.
BREAKING 🚨: @therealmarkhunt vs. @miketyson looks to be in the works for an 8 round, boxing match in Saudi Arabia later this year.
Very close to being announced, likely to be made offical sometime in February.
Timeline looks to be December.
HUGE 🤯
Other outlets, including Daily Telegraph and The Australian, have published similar reports.
Hunt is one of New Zealand’s most iconic fighters of all time, and affectionately became known in his heyday as the “King of Walk-Offs” for the manner in which he’d brutally knock an opponent out, yet casually walk off as if it was never in doubt.
His resume includes a who’s who of legendary heavyweights in MMA, including Fedor Emilianenko, Alistair Overeem, Junior dos Santos, Fabricio Werdum, Stipe Miocic, Frank Mir, Derrick Lewis and Curtis Blaydes.
Tyson is even more well-known in his sport. He got his career off to a strong start by claiming his first world heavyweight title at 20 years, four months and 22 days old — a record for the youngest boxer to win a championship in that division.
He beat Trevor Berbick, Larry Holmes, Michael Spinks and Donovan Ruddock, and he also fought Evander Holyfield and Lennox Lewis.
Now, they may be coming to blows in an event that would pit an MMA fighter against a boxer.
Mike Tyson Looked Sharp When He Last Fought
Hunt, 49, hasn’t competed since 2018, when he suffered a decision loss to Justin Willis at a UFC event — his third successive defeat.
Tyson, 57, has actually been in a ring more recently than Hunt — albeit in an exhibition bout.
In July 2020, shortly into the COVID-19 pandemic, Tyson and fellow 1990s boxing great Roy Jones Jr. announced an exhibition event for pay-per-view that they’d participate in called “Lockdown Knockdown.”
The two came to blows on November 28 and put on a show that was so wildly anticipated that it sold over 1.6 million PPV buys and generated more than $80 million in revenue, USA Today reported at the time.
The bout was officially a draw, but Tyson looked by far the superior fighter on the night.
Tyson hasn’t returned to the ring since but considering the amount of money that Saudi Arabia is paying fighters to compete in their “Riyadh Season,” it would not be a shock to find Tyson, too, lured by a big payday.
It Is Not The First Time Mike Tyson Has Been Linked With an MMA Fighter
It is not the first time an MMA fighter has been linked with a boxing rules bout against Tyson, and considering his fame, it likely won’t be the last, either.
On an August 9 episode of “The MMA Hour,” hosted by Ariel Helwani, 47-year-old Fedor, an MMA heavyweight great, said he’d be keen to fight Iron Mike.
“Mike Tyson would be an interesting fight,” he said.
“He has a big name, he’s a legend. … It would be interesting because you can see a lot of his videos on YouTube and all over the place, he’s still in good shape.
“He still works pads, he still has that same power.”
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Mike Tyson Could Return to the Ring This Year, Report Says