Mike Tyson discovers new world ranking after Jake Paul defeat

Boxing legend Mike Tyson has been ranked 309 in the BoxRec heavyweight rankings after his fight against social media personality Jake Paul. The 58 year old former undisputed world champion made his return to professional boxing on Friday, 18 years after his last bout against Kevin McBride in 2005.

However, Tyson was beaten by the 27 year old Paul, losing on points. Following the fight, Tyson took to Twitter to express his gratitude for the experience, stating: "This is one of those situations when you lost but still won. I'm grateful for last night. No regrets to get in ring one last time."

"I almost died in June. Had 8 blood transfusions. Lost half my blood and 25lbs in hospital and had to fight to get healthy to fight so I won. To have my children see me stand toe to toe and finish 8 rounds with a talented fighter half my age in front of a packed Dallas Cowboy stadium is an experience that no man has the right to ask for. Thank you."

Tyson's recent defeat means he is now 309th in the new heavyweight rankings, placing him 183 spots behind Paul.

The 58 year old boxing legend is just three places above Terrell Jamal Woods, a 35 year old fighter with a less than stellar record of 29-62, having won only one of his last 15 fights. Meanwhile, relatively unknown boxers like Peter 'The Problem' Naylor rank significantly higher than Tyson, reports the Mirror.

As for Paul, the young American boxer has climbed to the 126th spot globally after his victory in Texas. Reflecting on the fight, Paul admitted: "I wanted to give the fans a show, but I didn't want [to hurt him]. I wanted to give the fans a show, but I didn't want to hurt somebody that didn't need to be hurt."

While some spectators were underwhelmed by the match—with a few even departing the AT&T Stadium before the announcement of the result—the buzz around Paul's performance has been substantial. In the wake of the fight, undisputed light-heavyweight world champion Artur Beterbiev challenged Paul via Instagram: "@jakepaul what can you do in ring against the current undisputed champion? " Beterbiev posted on Saturday. "Just know that I'm always open to any suggestions."

On Saturday, it was revealed that over 60 million households tuned into the main event on Netflix, causing the streaming service to crash multiple times. Meanwhile, the fight's gate exceeded $18m, doubling the previous Texas gate record for combat sports in both boxing and MMA, surpassing Canelo Alvarez's record of $9m