Mike Tyson ends a near two-decade professional exodus from the ring this month when he returns to face Jake Paul in Texas for a blockbuster encounter.
The former heavyweight champion will meet the YouTuber-turned-boxer in AT&T Stadium, Arlington, Texas, as he looks to return in barnstorming fashion.
But if there's one thing the younger generation may know Tyson more for, it is his idiosyncratic face tattoo, which he has had since 2003.
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But how did it come to pass? What is the story around it? And does Tyson have any other tattoos? DAZN investigates and explains.
Why does Mike Tyson have a tattoo on his face?
Tyson first suggested he would get a tattoo on his face if he defeated Lennox Lewis in their 2002 bout, and although he lost by eighth-round knockout, he still followed through.
Originally, the heavyweight claimed he intended to get "a bunch of hearts" rather than the now-iconic design, but was ultimately talked out of it by artist S. Victor Whitmill.
He subsequently agreed to a design inspired by the Māori tattoo style of tā moko, consisting of two curved figures, and suggested it exemplified a "warrior tribe".
What was the controversy around Mike Tyson's tattoo?
Tyson's decision to get the tattoo forced the postponement of his next bout, against Clifford Etienne in 2003, with many wondering if it suggested a lack of focus from the star.
He was furthermore accused of cultural appropriation with his decision to take the tattoo, having no genealogical connection to the Māori, the indigenous Polynesian people.
Tyson was then embroiled in further controversy over the tattoo's likeness being used in the film The Hangover Part II, having previously cameoed himself in The Hangover.
Artist Whitmill filed Whitmill v. Warner Bros. Entertainment Inc. in 2011, seeking to enjoin the film's release as a result, though it was ultimately dismissed later that year.
Does Mike Tyson have any other tattoos?
Tyson has three other tattoos of note, all of men he has professed to be inspired by - politician Mao Zedong, tennis player Arthur Ashe and revolutionary Che Guevara.
The first two, of the former People's Republic of China chairman and the grand slam-winning tennis player, were inked during his jail term between 1992 and 1995.
The latter has also been dated to the same period, but while the others are on his biceps, Tyson's tattoo of Guevara is inked on his abdomen.
Jake Paul vs. Mike Tyson fight date, start time, venue
Paul vs. Tyson is on Friday, November 15 in the US. The preliminary card will begin at 5:30 p.m. ET, 4:30 p.m. CT, 10.30 p.m. UK, with the main card starting at 8 p.m. ET, 5 p.m. CT in the US, and 12 a.m. Saturday UK time.
Paul and Tyson's main ring walk is expected to start at 4 a.m. in the UK and 10 p.m. ET, 9 p.m. CT in the US.
The fight is taking place in Dallas, Texas, at the AT&T Stadium, which holds 80,000.
- Date: Friday, November 15
- Venue: AT&T Stadium, Dallas, Texas
- Event start time: 8 p.m. ET / 4.30 p.m. CT / 12 a.m. UK (Saturday)
- Paul vs. Tyson ringwalks (approx): 10 p.m. ET / 9 p.m. CT / 3 a.m. UK (Saturday)
Jake Paul vs. Mike Tyson fight card
The Paul vs. Tyson undercard is a strong one, with the main attraction, Katie Taylor, defending her IBF, WBA, WBC and WBO women's super lightweight titles against Amanda Serrano.
That is a rematch from the 2022 bout, which Taylor won by split decision at New York's Madison Square Garden, and this second fight promises to be just as thrilling.
- Jake Paul vs. Mike Tyson; Heavyweight
- Katie Taylor vs. Amanda Serrano; For Taylor's IBF, WBA, WBC and WBO women's super-lightweight titles
- Mario Barrios vs. Abel Ramos; For Barrios's WBC welterweight title
- Neeraj Goyat vs. Whindersson Nunes; Super-middleweight
- Shadasia Green vs Melinda Watpool; vacant women’s WBO super-middleweight title
- Lucas Bahdi vs. Armando Casamonica; super lightweight
- Bruce Carrington vs Dana Coolwell; featherweight
What channel/stream is Jake Paul vs. Mike Tyson?
TV details: US and UK: Netflix
The Jake Paul/Tyson fight will be streamed on Netflix in both the UK and US. The fight will be available to current Netflix members as part of their normal subscription.
To sign up to Netflix will cost £4.99 a month with adverts, or £7.99 without the ads in the UK.
In the US a Netflix plan is $6.99 per month with ads or $15.49 without.
talkSPORT will have radio commentary in the UK.
Black Friday offer - huge saving on a DAZN boxing subscription
DAZN's Black Friday offer gives fight fans huge savings to watch the most exciting fight nights for even cheaper.
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For an annual subscription, that is now only £89.99, reduced from £119.99, in the UK, and $112.50 down from $224.99 in the US.
DAZN is the home of boxing, broadcasting over 150 fights a year across boxing, bare knuckle boxing, MMA and crossover boxing.
Signing up before November 29, with both annual and monthly options, will get you a ringside seat to the biggest fights still to come this year and into 2025.
That includes Sunny Edwards vs. Galal Yafai, Jaron Ennis vs. Karen Chukhadzhian, Gilberto Ramirez vs. Chris Billam-Smith, Jesse Rodriguez vs. Pedro Guevara, Liam Paro vs. Richardson Hitchins, and many more still to come.
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