This week, Mike Tyson returns to the ring after a 19-year break. His opponent is YouTube sensation Jake Paul, who some claim has become a professional boxer. bad for boxing. But boxing isn’t bad for Paul’s wallet. can make up for it 40 million dollars from this fight, but neither Paul nor Tyson confirmed their paydays.

On the surface, it’s tempting to find out whether the 58-year-old Tyson can beat Paul, who is less than half Tyson’s age. Then there’s this: finding out if Paul can continue to build his resume as a boxer by beating real boxers. However, the intrigue in the lowest joint dominant is whether Jake Paul will be the next great white heavyweight.

There is a truth in advertising that sex sells. That’s not the only thing being sold. . . racing also sells especially in boxing.

Race (or racism) is a prominent tactic in fight promotion. One of the most obvious examples was this: Mayweather-McGregor Fight in 2017, with McGregor engaging in pre-fight shenanigans in the name Mayweather “boy” — the anti-Black slur that serves as a stand-in for the N-word as he instructs her to “dance” for him.

But there are other fights too Wilder-Fury or even Mayweather-(Logan) Paul. Boxing races even sell out in Hollywood. Examples include “Great White Hope,” “Great White Excitementand most importantly in the “Rocky” series – the fictional story of a self-taught white (Italian) boxer capturing the Black heavyweight champion in the first film, defeating that champion in the second film, and defending his title against another Black heavyweight in the 1st film. third.

For this he earned a statue on the steps of the Philadelphia Museum of Art. The irony of praising a white fictional boxing hero in Philadelphia was not lost on the comedian. Bill Burr Who said in 2011:

“Fucking king Rocky is your hero. All the pride of your city is built around the non-existent king man. “You got Joe Frazier from here, but he’s black so you can’t handle him, so you build a three-foot-tall fucking Italian king statue, you stupid Philly cheese-eating fucking king fools.”

The city erected a statue of Joe Frazier in 2015.

Selling racing works in other sports, too. For example, one of the biggest sports stories this year was the rise of the WNBA and women’s basketball in general. Caitlin Clark’s popularity has a lot to do with it. Clark’s talent on the field not only created excitement, but also led to him being selected as the next inductee. great white hope In an industry dominated by black athletes; some of these are cast as villains due to their “treatment” of Clark. Angel Reese And Chennedy Carter.

Caitlin Clark #22 of the Indiana Fever controls the ball during the game against the New York Liberty at Barclayys Center on June 2, 2024 in Brooklyn, New York. (Rich Graessle/Icon Sportswire via Getty Images)But professional boxing is where the concept of the great white hope and the Black villain gained traction. At the time, it was not a foreign idea for African Americans to dominate a sport. In horse races, black jockeys He won more than half of the Kentucky Derby held from 1875 to 1903; until Jim Crow eliminated the Black jockey. Yet horse racing was not a sport in which a Black man could physically harm a white man. Boxing is such a sport.

In 1908, Whites began searching for a white boxer to defeat Jack Johnson, the first African American heavyweight champion. White people couldn’t understand that a black man was superior to a white man in boxing. Additionally, Johnson was not a Black man who “knew his place.” He was not afraid of white people. He also publicly displayed his relationships with white women.

James Jeffries was the first great white hope, announces He told America that “the white race will take back the heavyweight championship.” He suffered a strong defeat. From 1908 to 1915, many great white hopes tried but failed to defeat Johnson. Jess WillardNicknamed the “chocolate dripper,” he eventually became the pride of white America.

It would be seven years Before a Black man was allowed to compete for any boxing championship again, and 15 more until a Black man competed for the heavyweight title. The next Black heavyweight champion was Joe Louis and “good nigga” By white people, unlike Johnson.

Muhammad Ali would reverse the use of race to promote his fights, using many of his black opponents as white surrogates. Per Jeffrey T. SammonsProfessor of history at New York University and author of “Beyond the Ring: Boxing’s Role in American Society”: “These Blacks became surrogates of authority or the institution or the so-called ‘man’ . . . Without real white prospects, Black people became white people based on what was perceived as their political position.

Famous boxing promoter Don King called Gerry Cooney the great white hope in promoting Cooney’s fight with then-champion Larry Holmes. Even Cooney accepted“It’s a selling point.” So much so that Holmes had to do it. moving his family She ran away from her home because white supremacists shot her mailbox.

Floyd Mayweather, himself a promoter, took advantage of the race when choosing McGregor and Logan Paul to fight. “Money” Ever the capitalist, Mayweather seized the opportunity to earn lucrative wages by exploiting the racism that fueled his desire for decline.

According to a Wayne State Law School professor Khalid A. Beydoun“The money fuels the longing for a white contestant who can capture the imagination of new viewers and capture the maximum dollars only white people can bring in.” This explains why Logan Paul, a boxing novice, was able to enter the ring with a boxer as one of the best boxers ever. That’s why Jake Paul was able to make a deal with Netflix to fight the “baddest man on the planet.”

It’s good for business.

Mike Tyson, Nakisa Bidarian and Jake Paul pose on stage during the Jake Paul vs. Mike Tyson Boxing match at the Arlington press conference at Texas Live! On May 16, 2024 in Arlington, Texas. (Cooper Neill/Getty Images for Netflix)

But on the bright side, it doesn’t explain the harsh criticism directed at the Paul brothers, especially Jake. Hundreds of boxers train for years for the opportunity to earn life-changing money and get a shot at the world title. Jake Paul has already secured millions after eleven fights. Fighting Tyson further legitimizes him, and if Paul can win, it will likely propel him into world title contention. This by building his resume fighting non-boxers; But lately I have been boxing with people who have boxing experience, After his first defeat against a boxer.

A kind of glamor and white privilege that echoes Kim Kardashian’s style Seeking to practice law simply by passing the bar exam. Black people have to work twice as hard, while white people and the white people next to them have to be only half as good.

But Jake Paul may know something we, as a society, are reluctant to admit: We are thirsty for racial conflict, even if the conflict takes place in the boxing ring. This thirst is, in a sense, a thirst for racial vindication. for African AmericansI support everyone Black“It comes from the fact that black people sometimes have to overcome insurmountable odds to achieve justice or success.

While a “win” may seem like a blow against whiteness, ultimately justice or success does not come from an isolated incident of racial conflict, whether in the boxing ring, courtroom, or ballot box.

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For white people, the idea of ​​taking back what was “taken” from them is a real thing: jobs taken by immigrants, college admissions through affirmative action, views unfiltered by cancel culture, Christian values ​​by women and the LGBTQ+ community — and since the end of Discrimination — Black athletics. It is the ethos that is the basis of the “make America great again” mentality. This sentiment, among others, was behind Donald Trump’s recent re-election despite his loss in 2020.

However, this worldview is to their detriment.

President Lyndon Johnson said: “If you can convince the bottom white man that he is better than the top black man, he won’t notice you picking his pockets. Give him someone to look down on and he will empty his pockets for you.” The MAGA mentality picks the pockets of many white people. However, like Floyd Mayweather, Jake Paul is always a capitalist and does not hesitate to pickpocket.

Because no one can win when humanity cannot see everyone as fully human. I think that’s the genius of rising in boxing, the understanding that people will pay to watch the other fall. They will either pay with their votes or in cash. Jake Paul has become adept at taking advantage of securing the latter.

We’ll soon see if he’s a great white hope or a great white sensation.

Jake Paul vs. The Mike Tyson fight will air live on Netflix on Friday, November 15 at 8pm ET/5pm PT.