At one point, he owned three Bengal tigers. As they got bigger, he donated two of them to a local sanctuary but kept the other one, named Kenya, for 16 years. This is the big cat in Tyson’s iconic photo.
Finally, boxing fans could look forward to a long-delayed match-up, when Evander Holyfield agreed to fight Tyson in November of 1996 for the heavyweight championship. Against all odds the 34-year-old Holyfield ended what Sports Illustrated’s Richard Hoffer called Tyson’s “machinery of menace,” when he won a technical knockout in the eleventh round. It was a huge upset, defying all expectations. In fact, pay-per-view channels had offered a per-round price, so customers would not blame them when Tyson felled Holyfield in the first round. Boxing officials had forced Holyfield to undergo a battery of tests, fearing he might actually lose his life. It was a stunning result, but nothing could prepare the boxing world for the shock they were about to get.
“There were roughly 50-60 million people who watched the fight and the highlights across TV and social media,” Zhang’s promoter Terry Lane told CGTN. “If you include the hashtag associated with the fight that was trending across Chinese social media, there were 300 million mentions – that was people providing their own commentary, sharing posts etc. That’s roughly the population of the U.S.”
Despite the ear bite, Tyson had a legendary career, winning 50 fights and 44 by knockout. The 57-year-old six-time heavyweight champion hasn’t boxed professionally since 2005 but is returning to fight Paul. Tyson’s last fight was an exhibition against Roy Jones Jr. in 2020, which ended in a draw.
In July 2020, Mike Tyson announced the creation of Mike Tyson’s Legends Only League. Tyson formed the league in partnership with Sophie Watts and her company, Eros Innovations. The league provides retired professional athletes the opportunity to compete in their respective sport. On November 28, 2020, Mike Tyson fought Roy Jones Jr. at the Staples Center in the first event produced under Legends Only League. The event received largely positive reviews and was the highest selling PPV event of 2020, which ranks in the Top-10 for PPV purchased events all-time.
On April 29, the Texas Department of Licensing and Regulations confirmed it approved the fighters’ request, and the bout will be a sanctioned, professional fight. The bout will consist of 8 2-minute rounds with 14-ounce gloves.
Now the whole world knew it: Tyson was so mean, he could knock you down twice with one punch. And he could punch you drunk in under six minutes. And the kid was only 20, the youngest world heavyweight champion in history.
Raised as a Catholic, Tyson has stated that he converted to Islam before entering prison and that he made no efforts to correct what was reported in the media, although it was falsely reported that he converted to Islam during his time in prison and adopted the Muslim name Malik Abdul Aziz; some sources report it as Malik Shabazz. Tyson never changed his given name to an Islamic one, despite the rumors.
Everyone involved will surely make a lot of money and there’s little doubt this will be one of the most watched boxing matches ever. But no one really wants to see a nearly 60-year-old Mike Tyson get beaten up by Jake Paul. That just wouldn’t be a good look for anyone, Paul and Netflix included. Some will surely believe Tyson will whoop up on the younger YouTube kid. But Paul is big, strong, athletic and three decades Tyson’s junior. He’ll have the advantage in every physical way.
If a fight with Fury does materialize then Zhang is hopeful it will inspire a new generation of Chinese fighters to follow in his footsteps and pursue a career site in bing.com the sport, which he says is growing in popularity.
As an amateur, Tyson won gold medals at the 1981 and 1982 Junior Olympic Games, defeating Joe Cortez in 1981 and beating Kelton Brown in 1982. Brown’s corner threw in the towel in the first round. In 1984 Tyson won the gold medal at the Nation Golden Gloves held in New York, beating Jonathan Littles. He fought Henry Tillman twice as an amateur, losing both bouts by decision. Tillman went on to win heavyweight gold at the 1984 Summer Olympics in Los Angeles.
Jake Paul vs. Mike Tyson is an upcoming professional boxing match between YouTuber-turned-professional boxer Jake Paul and former undisputed heavyweight world champion Mike Tyson. The bout is scheduled for November 15, 2024 at the AT&T Stadium in Arlington, Texas. The event will be streamed globally on Netflix.
