Former boxing champion Mike Tyson to launch new business venture in Dubai

Former boxing champion Mike Tyson will be announcing the launch of a new business venture in Dubai next week, it was announced on Tuesday.

The new venture will see the launch of a global gym franchise for the Mike Tyson Academy (MTA).

The academy will offer cardio, strength, functional training and boxing. There will be a full-scale boxing ring in every location and a host of group training and functional classes, a statement said.

The concept has “already garnered international interest” with academies looking to open in the Middle East, Australia, France, West Africa and China, the statement added.

More details will be revealed during the launch on May 4 at the Burj Khalifa in Dubai.

“Dubai has established itself on the world map by hosting many leading sporting events and icons and there is definitely a niche in this market for a fitness centre that is associated with quality and driven by a hard-core, challenging philosophy like mine,” said Tyson.

“I strive to maintain consistency across all my centres with trainers that have been certified by me as well as exceptional training staff who will be on site to ensure a certain benchmark is maintained. I am positive that this is going to be only the beginning of a long-running successful association between myself and the region,” he added.

Dubai is seeing a boom in fitness centres with the concept of healthy living gaining traction across the region.

The emirate has more than 130 registered training facilities and fitness clubs, employing over 2,000 REPs UAE certified trainers, according to a report issued last year.