Paul and Tyson: Breaking Down Their Surprising BoxRec Post Fight Rankings

Before the fight, I estimated that Mike Tyson might still rank among the top 500 fighters in the world, with a potential ceiling as high as 300th,and a floor of 700th based on my research of the BoxRec.com database and rankings. Jake Paul, meanwhile, seemed to fall within the same range for heavyweights in my estimation moving up divisions and adding significant weight. At the time, Paul was ranked 92nd in the cruiserweight division but had bulked up by 40 pounds since his fighting weight 14 months prior.

Surprising Post-Fight Rankings

After their matchup, BoxRec awarded both fighters updated heavyweight rankings. Jake Paul achieved an impressive world ranking of 106th out of 1,500 heavyweights and 22nd among 350 U.S. heavyweights. This leap is supported by his wins over two cruiserweights currently ranked 44th and 47th and his victory over Tyson. He should have likely been ranked over each already which was not talked about.

Tyson, on the other hand, received a 309th global heavyweight ranking and ranked 78th among U.S. heavyweights. While this is higher than my personal estimate, it isn’t completely implausible given the prevalence of older fighters and those with subpar records in the global rankings.

Oliver McCall is up to 155th with his win a few days later. That one is a little hard to buy however watching that fight, beating another 54 year old. He did set the record as the oldest former heavyweight to win however.

A Defensible Ranking Outcome

Although I would have placed Tyson in the 600s and Paul somewhere in the 200–300 range, these rankings reflect the reality of the global boxing landscape. For context, their fight was comparable to the caliber of top 500 matchups that occur regularly worldwide.

Fighting Perception Versus Reality

Critics of the fight often dismiss it, but these rankings validate its legitimacy. Many fighters in their 40s, 50s, or with poor records still compete, and the skill level demonstrated by Paul and Tyson doesn’t stray far from that standard.

Paul is building a resume that is worth of the ranking. He should probably drop some weight and try to fight a top 20 fighter in the easier cruiserweight division and start to move towards a title fight there.