One of the most frightening human beings ever to step into the boxing ring, Mike Tyson was the model of the supreme gladiator - unbeaten and unbeatable. Never before had one individual captured the attention of the wider world via sport except Muhammad Ali. Michael Gerard Tyson was born in Brooklyn, New York, and was raised by his mother, Lorna Mae . From 1987-1990, he was the undisputed world heavyweight champion conducting a reign of terror in the prize-fighting ring and earning millions of dollars whilst doing it. He had won the WBC title in November 1986 at the tender age of twenty becoming the youngest heavyweight champion ever. Soon after he claimed the WBA crown from James "Bonecrusher" Smith before beating Tony Tucker for the IBF championship. Brutal victories against the likes of Pinklon Thomas, Tony Tubbs, Larry Holmes, Tyrell Biggs and Michael Spinks confirmed his status as the best in the world. However, his life outside the ring was as engrossing as his life in it. A short-lived marriage to actress Robin Givens was followed by a catalogue of personal misfortune that ultimately resulted in him losing his world championship to James "Buster" Douglas in Tokyo in February 1990. He was jailed for rape in 1992 and released in 1995. A comeback later that same year saw him beat two opponents before regaining the WBC heavyweight crown in March 1996. He added the WBA crown to his tally by beating Bruce Seldon before getting stopped by the unheralded Evander Holyfield in November 1996. A rematch in June 1997 saw him bite a chunk of Holyfield's ear off - an act that earned him worldwide condemnation. He has continued to fight on and off; a title challenge in 2002 saw him lose in 8 rounds to Lennox Lewis whilst a routine assignment in July 2004 saw him beaten by another British talent, Danny Williams, in 4 rounds. His final fight was a loss to Irishman Kevin McBride in 2005, although to most observers it was clear Tyson had absolutely nothing left, including the desire to fight. After leaving boxing as a fighter he continued to remain in the public eye both for the right & wrong reasons, including further brushes with the law. In 2009 he appeared as a fictional version of himself in the hit film 'The Hangover' & its subsequent sequel in 2011 as well as a number of WWE events. Tyson returned to boxing some years later as a promoter, guiding the next generation of contenders to the top under his promotional banner 'Iron Mike Productions' & now seems to be a man at peace, settled with a young family & enjoying life. But his legacy as the youngest world heavyweight champion of all time, and the impact he had on both sport & popular culture in the late '80s and early '90s, will forever remain.
Was involved in a street fight with former opponent Mitchell Green in 1988. In 1997 Green won a lawsuit over the incident and was awarded $45,000.
Boxer
Bit off a chunk of Evander Holyfield s ear during a heavyweight title bout.
In 1991 Desiree Washington , a Miss Black America contestant, charged that Tyson raped her in an Indianapolis hotel room. He was arrested, tried, convicted and served three years in prison.
(January 2002) Wife Monica Turner filed for divorce.
(January 2002) The Nevada State Athletic Commission voted to deny Tyson a license to box in Las Vegas, thereby effectively pulling the plug on an April 6 pay-per-view bout with Lennox Lewis that was due to air on both HBO and Showtime and could have produced the biggest take for a heavyweight title fight ever.
(June 2002) Was soundly defeated by Lennox Lewis via knockout in the eighth round.
Titles: 1986: WBC Heavyweight Title 1987: WBA Heavyweight Title 1987: IBF Heavyweight Title 1987: Undisputed World Heavyweight Champion 1996: WBC Heavyweight Title 1996: WBA Heavyweight Title
Retired with a record as of 2002: 50-6-0 (44) 2nc.
Children by ex-wife Monica Turner : Rayna (b. 14 February 1996) and Amir (b. 5 August 1997).
Ex-wife Monica Turner is a pediatric resident at Georgetown University Medical Center.
His father, Jimmy Kirkpatrick, reportedly fathered 16 children, 3 of them by Tysons mother, Lorna Smith Tyson. By the time Mike was born, Kirkpatrick had left her.
Admits paternity of an 8-month-old girl born to Kimberly Scarborough of New York. (28 March 1991)
Frequently uses the word "ludicrous".
Was adopted by Cus DAmato , boxing genius and trainer of such fighters as Floyd Patterson.
Before the game "Street Fighter II: V" came to the USA, there were fighters named Mike Bison who was a 65" tall boxer, Balrog who was a Spanish assassin with a claw, and Vega who was the leader of Shadowloo. To avoid a possible lawsuit from Tyson, Capcom (the makers of Street Fighter) had a three-name swap between Mike Bison, Balrog and Vega. After the switch, the boxer became Balrog, the Spanish Assassin became Vega, and the leader of Shadowloo became the shortened M. Bison, without a definite clarification as to what M now stood for.
His name was dropped from the 1987 classic game Mike Tysons Punch-Out!! because the contract for his name was about to expire, and he lost to James Buster Douglas. Since he was no longer the champion, and with his contract expiring soon after, Nintendo no longer wanted Tyson. As a result, the game title became "Punch-Out!" and the last fight was against Mr. Dream, rather than Tyson himself, with Mr. Dream having the same abilities and sayings as Tyson.
At 13 years old weighed 200 pounds.
Not long after his release from prison, he was ready for a massive return. It was the most anticipated comeback in generations. In August of 1995, he beat Peter McNeeley in a matter of seconds - 89, to be exact.
He was fined $3 million, and was banned from boxing for one year for biting Evander Holyfield s ear during a bout.
In 2000 he fought three times. His third, against Andrzej Golota , was first a victory, but changed to no-contest after Tyson failed a drug test. The next year he fought only once, knocking out Brian Nielsen in the seventh round.
Served nine months in jail in for assaulting two people after a car crash in 1998.
The character "Blood" from Crime Fighters 2 was modeled after him, and his nemesis, Mitchell Green.
From 6 March 1985 to 11 February 1990, he was undefeated with a record of 37-0.
On 11 June 2005, he lost a non-title fight against Kevin McBride. Tyson, who was favored to win the match, did not leave his corner after the end of the sixth round, and McBride was proclaimed the winner.
Proposed fights with World Wrestling champion Hulk Hogan and Mixed Martial Arts Champ Royce Gracie never materialized.
Won his first 19 fights by knockout.
He was knocked out by James Buster Douglas , Evander Holyfield , Lennox Lewis and Williams. Kevin McBride scored a TKO over Tyson after Tyson quit on his stool at the start of round 6.
Earned approximately $200,000 per second in his fight with Michael Spinks, which was over-hyped, only accessible by giant screens at arenas across America, and over in 90 seconds.
His 1988 1 min. 30 sec. match against Michael Spinks was compared to challenging boxer John L. Sullivan in Timecop .
"The Simpsons" boxer character "Drederick Tatum" was based on him and Riddick Bowe.
Exodus, the four-year-old daughter of Tyson and former girlfriend Sol Xochitl, died in a Phoenix, AZ hospital following a freak accident with a treadmill cord on 26 May 2009. Tyson and Lakiha Spicer, the mother of his youngest infant daughter, secretly married 11 days later in Las Vegas.
He was the youngest heavyweight champion of the world at twenty years old, a record he still holds.
WWE Hall of Famer.
An avid lover of birds, Tyson keeps up to 100 pigeons at his home.
(May 2011) Buenos Aires, Argentina: Competing with his wife on the "Bailando por un Sueo", Show conduced by Marcelo Tinelli.
(June 2005) He was unable to continue in his comeback fight against Irish Heavyweight Champion Kevin McBride, and lost by a technical knockout. He announced his retirement after the fight.
The Street Fighter character Balrog was modeled after Tyson. The characters Japanese name was even Mike Bison.
Was portrayed by Michael Jai White , in the 1995 TV movie "Tyson" .
Paid Robin Givens $8 million, as part of their divorce settlement.
Younger brother of Neil deGrasse Tyson.
Friends with Muhammad Ali , and Eddie Griffin.
At one point his net worth was over $400 million.
I feel like sometimes that I was not meant for this society.
Learning to steal and fight at a young age, I was in a lot of trouble.
God, it would be good to be a fake somebody, rather than a real nobody.
Everyone has a plan until they get punched in the face.
I want to rip out his heart and feed it to Lennox Lewis. I want to kill people. I want to rip their stomachs out and eat their children.
As long as we persevere and endure, we can get anything we want.
I did my time for the rape. I paid my money to Las Vegas. I paid my dues.
You come home, and you party. But after that, you get a hangover. Everything about that is negative.
I feel like sometimes that I was not meant for this society.
