Some Thoughts on Mike Tyson

Mike Tyson was the great fighter of the 1980's, maybe the greatest of all time. He changed what it means to be a champion by knocking out all his opponents in the first round. The young Tyson utterly defeated established fighters with names like "Bonecrusher" and "Razor". I remember the hype leading up to Tyson vs. Spinks. People said "now there is a real challenger for this kid Tyson". They said that Tyson's round of good luck was over - that Spinks was a solid, mature, skilled fighter. Many predicted Spinks would win. And what happened? Tyson knocked him out in 30 seconds.

The 80's were the happy days - sunny skies, not a care in the world, getting all A's in school, riding bikes, coming home to play Nintendo. And here, too, was Mike Tyson. A boxing game for the NES unlike any that had come before. Mike Tyson's Punchout was superb, innovative, and loads of fun. You play as little Mac, from Bronx NY, and fight fighters from around the world: France, Germany, Japan, India, Hippo Island. If you find a way to beat them all, you get your shot at Mike Tyson. And what happens? The same thing that happened to Spinks and so many others. Nothing prepares you for the Tyson onslaught. After knocking you out, he flexes his ripped bicep and smiles his characteristic missing-front-tooth smile. Tyson was not the largest fighter in the game. He was not the largest fighter in real life. He is 5'11'', and only 220lbs. But it is 220lbs of rock solid muscle, ripped and statuesque. And you have to ask yourself: "What kind of 21-year-old is missing a front tooth?". The answer: one who was raised on boxing, on combat, on violence. But, the irony is: when he does get hit in the face, his eyes flutter and he gets this expression of shock, like he's never been hit before. The game even shows this, if you do manage to hit him. This makes Tyson fights even a little bit funny.

Tyson made mountains of money in the 80's. People came to see him destroy his opponents. For a Tyson fight wasn't much of a fight at all, it was Tyson destroying the other guy. I remember when I was 12 or 13 years old, I sat at a bar with my grandfather and we watched Tyson vs. Bruno together. I was awed by Bruno. He was monumental - a huge, ripped, mountain of muscle, much bigger than Tyson. I asked my grandfather "How can Tyson beat a guy so big and strong as that?". I didn't see how anyone could hurt Bruno, much less beat him. I was worried, for Bruno was British, and national pride was at stake. My grandfather said emphatically "Tyson is a horse...Tyson will win". I watched four rounds of these guys going at it. By the fourth round break, Tyson was shown in his corner, calmly drinking his water. Then, Bruno was shown, and his face was a bloody mess. I've never forgotten it

Tyson spent his money like the world was coming to an end. He lavished every luxury on himself. He collected cars and mansions as he caroused with strippers and hookers. He eventually married the gorgeous actress Robin Givens, who I knew as the hot babe from the TV show "Head of the Class". Tyson was truely the greatest ever. Not bad for a poor kid from Catskill, New York.

I wish that this was the Mike Tyson that would be remembered for all time. Perhaps only to me, he'll always be the kid with the missing tooth, who said with a high-pitched lisp "you come to face me with inferior skills, you're as good as dead".

Soon, Robin Givens wanted a divorce. She accused him of shoving and hitting her. A changed Tyson went to Tokyo to fight Buster Douglas. He had lost or changed his entire support network. He allowed corrupt people into his inner circle. Then, the unthinkable happened: Tyson was knocked out. He later admitted that he hadn't taken the fight seriously, and that he was too busy "@#$%^&* those geisha girls" to train. Tyson said afterward "I'll be champion again in six months". But it was not to be. After the Buster Douglas fight, he would never be champion again. He was convicted of raping miss black USA. At his trial, he came across as a "babbling idiot", and he was sent to the slammer for three long years.

An embittered Tyson always denied he was guilty. He said in an interview: "I didn't rape anybody....now, I wish I had. Her and her mamma.". In prison, Tyson converted to Islam, mainly because Islam allows men to "fornicate".

Upon his release, Tyson soon began training for a comeback. But, as those closest to him knew, he was not the same fighter. Three long years of incarceration had eroded his skills. Tatoos began appearing on his body. A tatoo of Mao Tse-Tung appeared on his arm, and another revolutionary on his abdomen. Mao was a Communist atheist. Tyson is a Muslim. But, I guess it makes sense to him.

Tyson's post-incarceration goal was to become "the most vicious champion of all time". Before, he would come out to the ring by himself, gloves on, shirt off, and ready to pound somebody down. Now, he came with an entorage, wearing a robe. Still, he defeated all his opponents, until he was to face the champion: Evander Holyfield. People predicted Holyfield would get knocked out in the first round. Almost everyone was predicting Holyfield would lose. But, he would not be another Spinks. He would hang with Tyson for ten rounds, finally defeating him in one of the most exiting fights ever. Tyson was mortal after all.

Tyson would fight Holyfield again, only to lose by disqualification for biting him on the ear, twice! Once on each ear. Tyson lost his boxing license over this incident, and it looked like the great Tyson's career might be over. A few years ago, I played a hacked rom of Mike Tyson's Punchout. In it, the referree, Mario, says "Bite" instead of "Fight", and instead of punching, Tyson leans in to bite your ear. Quite sad indeed. For their part, Nintendo removed Tyson from the game. In later versions, you fight a make-believe white guy named Mr. Dream. Quite sad indeed.

However, the world had not heard the last of Mike Tyson. He got his license back and started training again - this time, to face a new champion: the 6'5'' British sensation Lennox Lewis. Again, Tyson defeated all his opponents in specacular fashion. In the post-fight interview of his final bout before taking-on Lewis, Tyson boasted in a squeaky, barely discernable lisp: "I am Jack Dempsy, I am Joe Louis, I am Cascious Clay. I'm the best ever. Ain't nobody can match me. My attack is impetuous, my defense is impregnable, I'm just ferocious. I want his heart. I'm gonna eat his children. Praise be to Allah!". In a press conference leading up to the fight, a disturbed Tyson went haywire. He yelled at a reporter: "you white #$%^&! You wouldn't last three minutes in my world, %^&*%! I'll #$%^ you until you love me, you @#$%^&!".

I watched the Tyson vs. Lewis fight on pay per view with my uncle. Sadly, I was indifferent as to who would win, though I was predicting Tyson. I saw footage of Tyson training, saw that familiar face again, and I thought "That is the face you don't want to see". Tyson appeared in his signature black trunks, with black shoes and no sox. Now, it was time for Tyson to live up to his mad ravings. And what happened? I saw Tyson get hit again and again. I saw that famous look of surprise on his face, as though to say "Did you just hit me? I can't believe you just hit me.". Each time Tyson charged forward, Lewis retreated while giving a hard right. Tyson had no answer for it, and Lewis eventually knocked him out.

After the fight, Tyson consoled himself by saying "It was a good payday for me". And when asked about his future, he said he would just "fade into oblivion".

But, there was still money to be made off the Tyson name. Time went by, and he did fight again, for Tyson needed the money. He had made 460 million dollars in his career, and he spent it all. He lost it all plus 25 million more, for his manager, Don King, had been robbing him for years. He was in debt, and too old to fight. I was playing tennis with my friend when I heard the news: Tyson had been beaten for the first time in a non-championship bout. He had lost to some guy named Danny Williams. I saw the photograph on the internet later. Tyson, now with a tatoo on his face, and a thin mustache, laying in the corner, unable to get up. The story was that he had twisted his knee during the fight, and once his knee got better, he would be a great fighter again.

A year later, Mike Tyson did fight again. He told his opponent: "I'll gut you like a fish!". His coach said that we would see a "smarter" Tyson, who would use his skills to win the bout, rather than his first-round power. But it was not meant to be. Tyson took a beating for five rounds, and didn't come out for the sixth. At the press conference afterward, Tyson said "I can't do this no more. I don't want to disgrace the sport.". Mike Tyson's career was over.

Mike Tyson has said some bizarre and horrific things in interviews. He told a female reporter: "I don't normally talk to women unless I fornicate with'em. So maybe you should just be quiet. Unless you want to...you know". This is a far cry from the Tyson I knew as a kid in the 80's - the Tyson who said in an interview, when asked who is heroes are, responded that Mario and Link were his heroes. He was a fan of Nintendo! How endearing. He was really just a big kid, but one who happened to have an iron body and killer punching skills. I saw a picture of him and the coach who raised him, Cus D'Amato. Tyson must have been about fifteen years old. He was not tall. You would never know that this kid would go on to become one of the great fighters ever. In an interview, Tyson was asked what his greatest moment was, and he said "Buster Douglas". And the reporter said "So what many would say is your worst moment, you say is your best moment, why?". Tyson responded that he never gave up, despite getting knocked down, he kept trying to get up, until the knockout was called. An unusal response, to be sure. Why couldn't he have said "Bonecrusher" or "Spinks"?

I think Tyson struggled with identity issues his whole life. A black youth from a poor neighborhood, he was raised by a white boxing coach. Yet, he never felt welcome in white society. I think Tyson got too serious. I liked him back when he was the all-American success story: no tattoos, no Islam, no rape conviction, no ear-biting incident. I liked him when he was the fun-loving, Nintendo-playing kid boxing prodigy, 19 years old, kid dynamite, knocking people out in the first round. It's too bad he had to grow up and start thinking about spiritual and identity issues. I once heard him in an interview, calling himself a @#$$%^ over and over again.

The last I heard of Mike Tyson, he had been arrested in Arizona for DUI and cocaine possession. Now, he's in rehab, trying to kick the habbit, I suppose. Islam doesn't allow drinking, much less cocaine snorting. But, he is not the first or the only person ever to ignore parts of his religion. I remember when I lived in the Phoenix area. I always hoped to catch a glimpse of him somewhere, to run into him at the mall, or see him in another vehicle on the freeway. What would I say to him? Maybe something brief but resonating, like: "You're the greatest of all time".