Michael Gerard Tyson was born June 30, 1966. He is an American former professional fighter. He competed between 1985 and 2005. In his early days, Tyson was nicknamed “Iron Mike” or “Kid Dynamite”, and then he became “The Baddest Man On the Planet”. He was the undisputed champion of heavyweight boxing from 1987 to 1990. Tyson won his 19 first professional fights by knockout. Twelve of those were in the first round. Tyson, who was 20 years old, four months and 22 days old, won his first 19 professional fights by a knockout, 12 of which were in the first round. Tyson became the lineal champ in the following year when he defeated Michael Spinks within 91 seconds.
Tyson was convicted in 1992 of rape. He was sentenced to six-years in prison. However, he was freed on parole in 1995. Tyson fought a series of comeback fights to regain the WBA title and WBC titles. In 1996, he joined Floyd Patterson, Muhammad Ali and Tim Witherspoon to regain the WBC titles. Tyson was stripped of his WBC title that year and lost the WBA title by Evander Holyfield in an eleventh round. Their 1997 rematch ended after Tyson was disqualified from biting Holyfield’s ears. One bite is known to be strong enough for Holyfield to take a piece of his right ear. Tyson lost the 2002 world heavyweight title to Lennox Lewis in a knockout.
Tyson’s intimidating and ferocious boxing style was well-known, as well as his controversial behavior in and out of the ring. His knockout-to-win percentage of 88% was what landed him 16th on The Ring’s 100 Greatest Boxers List and 1st on ESPN’s “The Hardest Hitters In Heavyweight History” Sky Sports called him “perhaps the most ferocious boxer to enter a professional ring.” He was inducted into both the International Boxing Hall of Fame as well as the World Boxing Hall of Fame.
Michael Gerard Tyson was born June 30, 1966. He is an American former professional fighter. He competed between 1985 and 2005. In his early days, Tyson was nicknamed “Iron Mike” or “Kid Dynamite”, and then he became “The Baddest Man On the Planet”. He was the undisputed champion of heavyweight boxing from 1987 to 1990. Tyson won his 19 first professional fights by knockout. Twelve of those were in the first round. Tyson, who was 20 years old, four months and 22 days, won his first 19 professional fights by a knockout, 12 of which were in the first round. Tyson became the lineal champ in the following year when he defeated Michael Spinks within 91 seconds.
Tyson was convicted in 1992 of rape. He was sentenced to six-years in prison. However, he was freed on parole in 1995. Tyson fought a series of comeback fights to regain the WBA title and WBC titles. In 1996, he joined Floyd Patterson, Muhammad Ali and Tim Witherspoon to regain the WBC titles. Tyson was stripped of his WBC title that year and lost the WBA title by Evander Holyfield in an eleventh round. Their 1997 rematch ended after Tyson was disqualified from biting Holyfield’s ears. One bite is known to be strong enough for Holyfield to take a piece of his right ear. Tyson lost the 2002 world heavyweight title to Lennox Lewis in a knockout.
Tyson’s intimidating and ferocious boxing style was well-known, as well as his controversial behavior in and out of the ring. His knockout-to-win percentage of 88% was what landed him 16th on The Ring’s 100 Greatest Boxers List and 1st on ESPN’s “The Hardest Hitters In Heavyweight History” Sky Sports called him “perhaps the most ferocious boxer to enter a professional ring.” He was inducted into both the International Boxing Hall of Fame as well as the World Boxing Hall of Fame.
Professional career
Tyson, then 18, made his professional debut in Albany (New York) on March 6, 1985. Hector Mercedes was defeated via first round TKO. He had 15 fights during his first year of professional fighting. Tyson won 26 of his 28 fights by TKO or KO and 16 of them were in the first round. Tyson was the next great heavyweight champ after his win streak.
The first nationally televised fight between Tyson and Jesse Ferguson was televised at Houston Field House, Troy, New York on February 16, 1986. It was carried by ABC Sports. In the fifth round Tyson knocked Ferguson down with an uppercut. In the sixth round Ferguson tried to hold Tyson and clinch him in an apparent effort to avoid any further punishment. The referee stopped the fight in the sixth round after repeatedly admonishing Ferguson to follow his instructions to box. The initial ruling was that Tyson won by disqualification of his opponent. After Tyson’s corner protested against a DQ win, the ruling was changed to a win by technological knockout (TKO).
After six more knockout wins, Tyson faced former world champion Marvis Frzier in Glens Falls (New York) on an ABC Sports broadcast. Tyson easily won the fight, charging at Frazier at first bell and hitting him with an elbow that knocked Frazier unconscious 30 seconds later.
Tyson was presented with his first title fight against Trevor Berbick in the World Boxing Council heavyweight championship. Tyson won the title via TKO in round two. He became the youngest heavyweight champion of all time at 20 years old. Many people were impressed by Tyson’s dominating performance. Donald Saunders said: “The noble, manly art of Boxing can at most cease worrying about its immediate Future, now that it has discovered a Heavyweight Champion fit to stand alongside Dempsey and Tunney, Louis Marciano, Marciano and Ali.
Tyson was an intimidating fighter. He combined his strength with exceptional timing, hand speed, coordination, and timing to knock down his opponents. Lorenzo Boyd, Jesse Ferguson and Jose Ribalta were each knocked down by this combination.
After Douglas
Tyson said that despite the loss, he gained a greater perspective on himself and boxing.
Tyson was able to recover from the defeat by knocking out Henry Tillman & Alex Stewart in the first round of his next fights. Tyson’s win over Tillman, 1984 Olympic heavyweight champion, allowed Tyson to avenge his amateur defeats at Tillman. These bouts set up an eliminator match for another chance at the undisputed world title of heavyweight, which Evan Holyfield won over Tillman in 1984’s Olympic heavyweight gold medalist.
Number one contender Tyson faced Donovan Ruddock in Las Vegas on March 18, 1991. Ruddock was considered the most dangerous heavyweight and one of the most hard punching heavyweights. For most of the fight Ruddock and Tyson fought back and forth. However, referee Richard Steele stopped the fight in the seventh round and favored Tyson. The decision angered the fans and sparked a post-fight brawl. This decision angered the fans and sparked a post-fight melee.
Ruddock and Tyson met again in June of that year. Tyson knocked down Ruddock twice, winning a 12-round unanimous decision 113–109, 114–108, and 114–108. A fight between Tyson, Holyfield and Holyfield was set for November 8, 1991 at Caesars Palace, Las Vegas. However, Tyson pulled out following a rib cartilage injury sustained during training.
Comeback
After being paroled from prison, Tyson easily won his comeback bouts against Peter McNeeley and Buster Mathis Jr. Tyson’s first comeback fight earned more than US$96million worldwide. This included a record US$63 million for PPV television. Buster Mathis Jr. Tyson’s first comeback fight grossed more than US$96 million worldwide, including a record $63 million for PPV television.
In March 1996, Tyson won the WBC title against Frank Bruno. It was the second fight between them, with Tyson knocking out Bruno in round 3. This would have been Lewis’s largest fight purse. Don King offered $4 million to Lewis to allow him to fight Bruce Seldon instead. The intention was that Tyson would win the WBA title if Tyson defeats Seldon in round one. Seldon was mocked and severely criticized in the press for apparently collapsing under Tyson’s innocuous punches.
Mike Tyson’s Legends Only League
Mike Tyson, in July 2020, announced the creation of Mike Tyson’s Legends Only League. Tyson created the league with Sophie Watts, her company Eros Innovations. The league gives retired professional athletes the chance to compete in their sport. Mike Tyson defeated Roy Jones Jr. at Staples Center on November 28, 2020 in the first Legends Only League event. The event received positive reviews and ranks among the Top-10 most-purchased PPV events of all time.
Life after boxing.?
Tyson lives in Seven Hills, Nevada. His three previous marriages have resulted in seven children. Tyson also has his oldest daughter from his second wife.
From February 7, 1988 to February 14, 1989, Tyson was married to Robin Givens, an actress. Givens was well-known at the time for her roles on the sitcom Head of the Class. Tyson was accused of abuse of his spouse and mental instability.
Tyson and Givens had a heated exchange in September 1988 when Givens interviewed Barbara Walters for ABC TV’s 20/20 newsmagazine. Givens described Tyson’s life as “torture, hell, worse than any I could imagine” Givens described Tyson’s mental illness as “manic depression” and shared her thoughts with Barbara Walters on the ABC TV newsmagazine 20/20 in September 1988. Tyson looked on intently, while Givens stated that she wanted to divorce Tyson
According to the book fire and fear: The inside story of Mike Tyson Tyson said that he punched Givens and claimed, “that was probably the most powerful punch I’ve ever thrown in all my life.”
Tyson said that the book was filled with errors. ” Although they had no children, she claimed she had miscarried. Tyson said that the book was filled with inaccuracies.
Tyson was married to Monica Turner twice, from April 19, 1997 to January 14, 2003. They had two children, son Amir and Ramsey, who are both non-binary.
Tyson’s four year old daughter Exodus, found unconscious by her seven-year old brother Miguel, was dangling from an exercise machine. Sol Xochitl, the mother of the child, untangled Exodus and administered CPR to her. She then called 911 for help. Tyson, who was visiting Las Vegas at that time, returned to Phoenix to be with her. She succumbed to her injuries May 26, 2009.
Tyson married Lakiha “Kiki”, 32 years old, eleven days after his daughter’s passing. They exchanged vows in a private ceremony at La Bella Wedding Chapel at Las Vegas Hilton.
Tyson was interviewed on The Ellen DeGeneres Show in March 2011 to discuss his Animal Planet reality series Taking on Tyson. In August 2013, Tyson admitted that he had lied about being sober and that he was on the brink of his death from alcoholism.
Tyson stated in November 2013 that “the more I look in churches and mosques the more the devil I see” However, a month later in a Fox News interview, Tyson stated that he is grateful to be a Muslim, and that he relies on Allah in his daily life. Tyson also spoke about his sobriety journey and how being around good people made him more humble.
Tyson also stated that he no longer eats vegan. He said, “I used to be a vegan for 4 years, but I don’t eat it anymore.” I do eat chicken from time to time. I should be vegan. No red meat, please! Red meat would make me very sick. This is probably why I was so insane before. “
Tyson declared in 2015 that he would support Donald Trump’s candidacy for president.
Tyson repeatedly punched a male passenger on a Jet Blue flight between San Francisco and Florida on April 20, 2022.
