After his fifth round stoppage of Frank Bruno on February 25, 1989, Mike Tyson returned to the ring five months later on July 21st, to face Carl ‘The Truth’ Williams at Atlantic City Convention Hall. I took that Saturday night off from my part-time security job at a local mall, then drove to my sister’s […]
Mike Tyson Part 10 Read More »
After his easy first round knockout of Michael Spinks on June 27, 1988, Mike Tyson experienced a tumultuous summer to say the least. He had married actress Robin Givens in February of 1988, and it was a troubled union from the start. Then in March, Tyson’s manager Jimmy Jacobs died after a long battle with
Mike Tyson traveled to Tokyo, Japan on March 21, 1988 to knock out an overweight, and undertrained Tony Tubbs in 2 rounds. I went over my sister’s house to watch it on HBO, and was hardly surprised at the outcome, especially when Tubbs entered the ring as such a fat slob. He got what he
After easily defeating Tyrell Biggs on October 16, 1987, Mike Tyson agreed to fight ex-champ Larry Holmes on January 22, 1988 at Atlantic City Convention Hall. Don King had tried to coax Holmes into a bout with Tyson for a year, but Larry finally agreed to a date, and a purse of 3.1 million dollars.
After his destruction of Pinklon Thomas on May 30, 1987, ‘Iron Mike’ Tyson was back in the ring two months later. This time his opponent was Tony ‘TNT’ Tucker, the IBF Heavyweight Champion. I saw the fight years later on VHS tape, and it was the first time Tyson fought someone who wasn’t intimidated at
After his impressive knockout of Trevor Berbick to win the WBC Heavyweight title, Mike Tyson was set to fight the winner of the December 12, 1986 bout between WBA champ Tim Witherspoon and James ‘Bonecrusher’ Smith, a late replacement for Tony Tubbs. My sister taped a copy of that fight from Madison Square Garden for
After his easy win over Alonzo Ratliff on September 6, 1986, Mike Tyson’s title-shot with Trever Berbick was set. They were both part of the HBO tournament to create a unified Heavyweight champ for the first time since Leon Spinks in 1978. The bout named “Judgement Day” would held at the Hilton Center in Las
I personally had moved to Las Vegas in April of 1986 for a few reasons. The job situation in south Jersey where I lived was lousy, and I needed a change in my life. I had worked for a few different airlines, and figured I could find work in Vegas at a different carrier. I
Mike Tyson fought the toughest opponent of his young career on May 3, 1986 against James ‘Quick’ Tillis. The bout from the Civic Center in Glens Falls, New York was shown live on ABC TV, and was competitive throughout. Tillis was an excellent boxer, went into the ring well-trained and fit at 207 3/4 lbs.,
Michael Gerard Tyson was born on June 30, 1966 in Brooklyn, New York. He grew up in crime-infested neighborhoods, and was arrested 38 times by the time he was 13 years old. While at the Tryon School for Boys in Johnstown, New York, he met Bobby Stewart, a counselor and former fighter. Through Stewart, Tyson
