From criminal gangs to World Championship: The strange life story of Mike Tyson

The story of an incorrigible man who rose from criminal gangs to become the World Champion...

Mike Tyson 30 Haziran 1966 tarihinde Birleşik Devletlerin suç oranı en yüksek yerlerinden biri olan Brooklyn’in arka sokaklarında dünyaya geldi. Birçok kez filmlere konu olan bu bölgede kendisini sokak çetelerinin içinde buldu ve birçok suça karıştı. Henüz 13 yaşındayken silah taşıdığı ve ateşlediği gerekçesiyle nezarette yatan Mike Tyson, zaten o yaşa kadar çeşitli suçlardan 38 kez tutuklanmıştı.


Mike Tyson, who was frequently exposed to violence by his family and the environment he lived in during his childhood, tried to get involved in street fights during this period. Mike Tyson, who studied at a boys' school in New York, was fighting a lot at school. For this reason, he received many warnings and disciplinary punishments. However, his combative attitude attracted the attention of former amateur boxing champion Bob Steward, and upon his insistence, he started boxing. Mike Tyson, who had a natural talent, started to love boxing during this period when he participated in inter-school tournaments.


In 1980, Mike Tyson met boxing legend Cos d'Amato, who changed his life and brought him to this day. D'Amato takes her to his home in Catskill. Cos d'Amato, who had Tyson train in his own home, has seen him as his son since the first day and has taken close care of him. Cos d'Amato is more like Mike Tyson's father than his trainer. Having established a father-son relationship, Tyson and d'Amato have always stated that they owe a lot to each other. Cos d'Amato said the following about Mike Tyson in an interview:
"I often say to Mike, 'You know, I owe you so much,' and he never really knows what I mean. If Mike wasn't where he is, I probably wouldn't be alive either. Nature is a lot smarter than people realize. We take people we care about, one by one." We lose and if I don't have a reason to continue, we slowly lose our interests until we say 'what am I doing in this world?' People get used to everything, even the thought of death is something people have gotten used to and people have accepted it. In my opinion, people die if they don't have the motivation to live "But I'm here with Mike for a reason, and that kid is my motivation. I'm going to live and watch Mike's successes. I won't go anywhere until I see those successes. Because when I go, he'll be a man who has learned not only to fight, but also to take care of himself." "I am successful not when I make a man a world champion, but if I can make him a world champion independently of me."


And the awaited day has come. Mike Tyson played his first professional boxing match on March 6, 1985 and defeated his opponent by knockout in the 8th second of the first round. With this victory, Mike Tyson made his name known all over the world and his name began to be mentioned among the best boxers in the world. A year later, he won the title of WBC Heavyweight World Boxing Champion by knocking out Jamaican WBC heavyweight boxing champion Trevor Berbick in the 2nd round. Mike Tyson, who made a perfect entry into the boxing world, became the new owner of the WBA belt by defeating his compatriot James Smith, nicknamed "Bone Breaker", by points in 1987.


When the date shows August 1, 1987, it will become clear whether Mike is the greatest boxer in the world, and he will fight against heavyweight boxing champion Tony Tucker, who holds the IBF belt at the time. Mike Tyson won this match, which was tough compared to all his matches so far, on points at the end of 12 rounds, adding the IBF belt to his existing belts and proving that he is the best in the world.


Mike Tyson, who married Robin Givens on February 7, 1988, started to show inspiration from his childhood days after this marriage. While Tyson was repeatedly taken to the police station for beating his wife and family, he also appeared before the judge many times for crimes such as beating Mitch Green, a boxer like himself, on the street and getting involved in a nightclub incident. Following these events, he ended his marriage with Robin Givens on February 14, 1989. When the dates show 1990, Mike Tyson, who had won all 37 matches until that day, lost to Buster Douglas in the match held in Tokyo on February 11, 1990, and lost all the IBF, WBA and WBC belts he had won until that day.

Mike Tyson, whose name was involved in a huge scandal the same year, was sentenced to 3 years in prison. He became acquainted with Islam in prison and changed his name to Malik Abdulaziz. The legendary boxer, who fought two matches after being released from prison and won both of them, became eligible to fight against Bruce Seldon, who held the WBA belt in 1996. Mike Tyson, who defeated Seldon with a technical knockout in the first round, regains his WBA belt. One year later, Mike Tyson made one of the biggest scandals in history. Mike Tyson requests a rematch from Evander Holyfield, whom he defeated a year ago, and it is decided to hold the rematch on June 28, 1997. Unable to control his anger in the 3rd round of the match, Tyson bit off Evander Holyfield's ear and was disqualified. After this match, Mike Tyson received huge fines and was banned from playing matches in many places.


Mike Tyson, who played 58 matches in his career, won 50 of these matches, 44 of which were by knockout. Tyson was defeated in the ring 6 times and 2 of his matches were inconclusive. Even though the legendary boxer, who started life at a very young age and under the most difficult conditions, is not an exemplary athlete, he continues to make a name for himself even today with the difficulties he had to deal with and the successes he experienced despite them.