According to multiple reports, the pay-per-view event drew more 1 million buys. Boxing journalist Dan Rafael revealed that the card drew in the neighborhood of 1.2 million buys, while MMAFighting.com received estimates that the show could even exceed the figure provided by Rafael.
Tyson vs. Jones was promoted by social media company Triller with a price point of $49.95. It was available through Fite TV as well as various television and satellite providers. If those figures are accurate, that would make the fight the highest-selling boxing event of 2020 — the Tyson Fury-Deontay Wilder rematch reportedly drew between 800,000 and 850,000 buys — and puts it on pair with UFC 251 (1.3 million) as the top-drawing combat sports card overall.
The card also drew interest thanks to a matchup between YouTube star Jake Paul and former NBA player Nate Robinson. Paul won by knockout, and the clip of the finish went viral.
The eight-round exhibition between Tyson and Jones was ultimately ruled a draw. After the bout, Tyson said that he would be interested in future bouts, including another meeting with Evander Holyfield.
UFC president Dana White kept on eye on the fight over the weekend and came away impressed.
I was nervous,” White said at the UFC on ESPN 18 post-fight press conference. “He’s [54] years old. Time is undefeated. Time takes us all down. One of the things is I was worried for Mike is he has this incredible aura still. Fighting is a young man’s game. All that being said, he looked f—ing awesome tonight. I was blown away how good he looked.
“And I was worried about Roy. Roy is 51 years old. Roy’s been more active than Tyson has been. But Roy actually got more tired than Mike tonight, which was shocking. I’m happy for them. I hope they both made a f—ing zillion dollars. And it exceeded my expectations.”