New York is among at least four states that will not allow legal wagering on next week’s fight between Mike Tyson and Jake Paul.
Pennsylvania, Colorado and Vermont also have eliminated the option to place bets on a boxing match that will feature the 58-year-old Tyson and 27-year-old Paul on Nov. 15 in Arlington, Texas, USA TODAY Sports has learned.
“We just consider it an untraditional boxing event that’s more of an exhibition,’’ Richard McGarvey, spokesperson for the Pennsylvania Gaming Control Board, told USA TODAY Sports. “We just said, ‘Not in Pennsylvania.’ ‘
Brad Maione, director of communications of the New York State Gaming Commission, said by email that wagering won’t be allowed ‘as it’s an exhibition featuring a former professional fighter. The NYS Gaming Commission has discretion regarding whether specific sports events are eligible for wagering. Generally, exhibition events and those featuring non-professional athletes are not permitted.’
The Tyson-Paul fight has been sanctioned as a pro bout by the Texas Department of Licensing and Regulation (TDLR), which regulates combat sports in Texas. But TDLR has agreed to non-traditional rules — two-minute rounds and 14-ounce gloves rather than the standard three-minute rounds and 10-ounce gloves — that has proved to be problematic with some state sports gambling regulators.
Paul has said he agreed to the rules at the request of Tyson. The TDLR said it agreed to the rules at the request of promoter Bryce Holden, who is working for Most Valuable Promotions (MVP), co-founded by Paul. MVP has partnered with Netflix, which will livestream the fight.
Colorado will not permit wagering on the fight because “it does not meet the minimum requirements for the industry in the state,’’ Derek Kuhn, a spokesman for the Colorado Department of Revenue, told USA TODAY Sports by email.
Boxing matches approved for betting in Colorado must follow unified rules as set by the Association of Boxing Commissions and Combative Sports, according to information provided by Kuhn. Unified rules call for three-minute rounds and 10-ounce gloves.
Based on the Division of Gaming’s previous evaluation of the fight, Kuhn said, “requirements not met include, but are not limited to, glove weight and that not all fighters are professionally ranked. The division has not been notified of any changes to this evaluation.’’
Vermont will not allow wagering on the fight because of the two-minute rounds and 14-ounce gloves, according to Olivia Kantyka, director of communications and legislative affairs for the Vermont Department of Liquor and Lottery. New York cited the same issue.
‘It’s really just those rule changes that were kind of a sticking point for us,” Kantyka told USA TODAY Sports.
Johnny Avello, the director of sportsbook operations at DraftKings, said six states will not accept wagers on the Tyson-Paul fight. The two other states did not immediately provide confirmation that they would not be accepting bets.
Of states that won’t accept wagers, Avello said, “Will people still be watching the fight? Probably, but I think enrollment would be much higher if they could get a wager on it.’
Pennsylvania’s McGarvey said this ‘isn’t the first time we’ve said no to this type of event.’’
He cited an exhibition between Evander Holyfield and former UFC champion Vitor Belfort, plus a fight involving Floyd Mayweather Jr.
Holyfield was 58 – the same age Tyson will be when he fights Paul – when he suffered a first-round TKO against Belfort, 44.
(This story has been updated to add new information.)
