Love him or hate him, the world continues to tune in to former YouTuber and Disney star Jake Paul, who has taken over social media since his switch to boxing in 2020.

The 27-year-old has compiled a professional record of 10-1, with six wins by knockout. On Friday, Paul steps into the ring for perhaps his most high-profile fight to date against former heavyweight champion Mike Tyson.

“I think I’ll knock him out in the fifth or sixth round,” Paul said in an interview with CNN. “I love Mike, but I need to work things out.”

The two were originally scheduled to fight in July this year, but the fight was postponed after Tyson suffered an ulcer burst during the flight.

Friday’s match will begin at 5:30 p.m. ET at AT&T Stadium in Arlington, Texas, and will consist of eight two-minute rounds. It will be free to watch with a Netflix subscription.

Although Paul has a slight preference for winning, the combat sports community is divided on the idea of ​​the fight. First, Eddie Hearn, Matchroom CEO and one of the sport’s biggest supporters, has heavily criticized the issue.

“He (Tyson) is 58 years old,” Hearn said. Fight Center TVHe adds: “I find it very sad, but it’s a big deal. I understand people will watch this. “It was fun, I guess, but it wasn’t the best day for someone who idolized this man growing up.”

British promoter Hearn represents boxing superstars Canelo Álvarez, Oleksandr Usyk and Dmitry Bivol. Also Paul vs. He also represents Katie Taylor, who fights for Tyson on the undercard.

On the other hand, Anthony Joshua, former heavyweight world champion and one of Hearn’s clients, has a very different view of the fight.

“I personally think it’s really good,” Joshua said. The Jonathan Ross Show. “I think hardcore boxers, boxing fans, they don’t like it because they’re like, ‘Why are they disrespecting our sport?’

“Let’s say we split this crowd in half and half the people are die-hard boxing fans and half are people who love a particular YouTuber, but this person brings all these people into boxing, which benefits everyone involved in the industry,” Joshua continued.

Criticism was also directed at Paul due to the age difference between him and Tyson. At the time of the fight, Tyson will be 31 years older than Paul.

Although Tyson is a more experienced fighter, decades have passed since his reign in the ring. Paul, meanwhile, is entering his physical prime when it comes to aging.

Speaking to CNN, the former YouTuber said his dream is to become a world boxing champion, but will fighting 58-year-old Tyson help or hurt him in his quest?

“I think it helped me going in there with one of the most brutal and vicious champions ever and having that experience under my belt,” Paul explained.

“Being able to set up a camp and go out there under the bright lights against one of the best ever made will only help my experience level,” he continued. “As I continue to improve behind the scenes with each camp, the more time I devote to the sport, the more lethal I become.”

In his professional career, Tyson was known for his brutal, emphatic knockouts against legends such as Michael Spinks and Larry Holmes. His last professional victory was a first-round knockout over Clifford Etienne in February 2003. His last fight was an exhibition match against Roy Jones Jr. in November 2020, which ended in a draw.

Tyson has released training videos ahead of the Paul fight, and the former heavyweight champion looks extremely fit despite his age.

“I’m not really nervous,” Paul said. “I believe in my talent. I improved every aspect of my game tenfold. I think heavyweights are slow. They don’t have much boxing skills and can’t get out of the way of punches.

“I’ll leave Mike behind there. “He’s not going to hit me because I’m not going to sit there and try to pick a fight with him like most of these heavyweights have done throughout their careers.”

Paul reiterated some of his criticisms of Tyson at Thursday’s weigh-in. As the pair looked at each other, the 58-year-old slapped Paul open-handed across the face.

“I didn’t even feel it at all,” Paul said. said Ariel Helwani moments after the fighters were separated by security. “Furious. He’s an angry little elf. Mike Tyson, I thought that was a nice slap, man, but you’re going to get knocked out tomorrow.

Paul is a polarizing figure on the internet; he is used to receiving both positive and negative reactions to his behavior on social media.

“This gets me going. “I love proving people wrong,” he said. “I think sometimes my self-confidence comes off as arrogant and arrogant, this guy thinks he knows everything but that just comes from my self-confidence and me believing in myself.

“When you do that in today’s society full of losers and sheep, they will label you as the bad guy, ostracize you, and want to see you fail,” Paul continued.

“It was at this point that I became abrasive and received a lot of criticism online. The funny thing about this whole thing is that it never happens in person. Personally, everywhere I go is love. Thousands of people. Thousands of pictures. I literally can’t go anywhere.

An extraordinary boxing journey

Paul had an unconventional foray into boxing, saying it started as “a whole YouTube extravaganza” of people challenging him and his brother Logan. They soon found themselves “training like pros” in preparation for big fights.

“The feeling of winning in front of 30,000 people saying ‘Fuck Jake Paul’ was such an amazing feeling,” Paul said. “Slowly, I started to fall in love with this sport.”

In January 2020, Paul entered the ring for his first professional fight, defeating YouTuber Ali Eson Gib by technical knockout. Since his debut, he has defeated retired basketball player Nate Robinson and former MMA legends Tyron Woodley, Anderson Silva and Nate Diaz.

In February last year, Paul suffered his first defeat at the hands of Tommy Fury, the younger brother of former heavyweight champion Tyson Fury. Although Paul was knocked down, Fury defeated him with a split decision victory.

Paul bounced back from the loss with a unanimous decision over retired UFC fighter Diaz. In his last few fights, he beat professional boxers Andre August and Ryan Borland by first-round knockout.

After their first fight in July was postponed, Paul went on to defeat bare-knuckle boxing champion Mike Perry by sixth-round TKO.

In addition to his success in the ring, Paul also founded his own production company with Nakisa Bidarian, who previously served as CFO of the UFC. Most Valuable Promotions has since signed Puerto Rican star Amanda Serrano, one of the biggest names in women’s boxing, and she will have a rematch against Irish fighter Taylor on Friday.

When Serrano signed with Most Valuable Promotions, he was viewed by Bidarian as “that perfect tool, the perfect athlete, the perfect superstar in the making.”

“(The company) was actually based on three things,” Bidarian told CNN. “One had the mentality of fighters first… Two wanted to double down on women… The third wanted to provide a platform for boxers.”

How far can he go?

As for his goals beyond the fight with Tyson, Paul wants to fight for the boxing world championship, compete in the cruiserweight division, as well as have a bout against one of the biggest stars in the sport.

“Being world champion (in boxing) is at the top of that list,” he said. “I think after I get that belt, Canelo (Álvarez) will want to fight me.

“To see the look on everyone’s face when I knock out Canelo for the first time in his career, the disappointment of all his fans will be hilarious,” Paul continued. “Then I will retire from now on.”

After winning the boxing world championship, Paul plans to take his talents to mixed martial arts. He hopes to become a fighting champion in the first two sports.

“I want to be the first dual sports champion,” Paul said. “(I) Want to move to MMA and get a world championship belt in MMA.

“I think it’s a lot easier than boxing,” he added. “MMA fighters have terrible cardio, slow tempos, terrible striking, and mediocre wrestling.”

Come Friday’s fight, such bold claims about his boxing career will be put aside for a moment as Paul faces one of the most fearsome fighters the sport has ever seen.

For more CNN news and newsletters, create an account at: CNN.com