Memories of Mike Tyson's career and being a fan...

[The Surgeon]

did you fellows think the first fight was stopped to soon. ?That was kinda the consenses on site.

A bit. But he looked gone and sagged back to the ropes THEN sprung to life when it got stopped so i cant be too harsh but id have let it go on and i think Tyson would have finished it then and there. The proper call would probably have been an 8 count as he fell into the ropes and they kept him up

[mehoe]

As I stated before I was only about 6 or so when Tyson KO'ed Spinks for the belt. Even before the fight I already knew who Mike Tyson was, that should tell you something about the reputation he had and the great job of his PR people

[Mintcar923]

June 1991 -Tyson-Ruddock II is right around the corner. I've been waiting for this fight for so long. Well, not quite as long as some of Mike's prior fights but this is gonna be a doozy! I knew I had to make it through freshman year at high school with no problems. I really didn't care if I got promoted with super-high grades or anything. I just had to make it through. I'd have to say that Typing was the class I was concerned about. It's pretty difficult for me to be able to type 35 wpm but of course, it can be done. Also, I was a little worried about my computer class and I knew I had to at least brush up on it. I had this strange ritual when I studied. I always listened to Men at Work's "Overkill," and for some reason that particular song helped me cope. All the rest I suppose I had in the bag. When the grades came back and I had passed with no real problems I knew I could focus completely on summer vacation and the big fight!

June 28, 1991 was here and I guess it has some historical significance in a way. Exactly three years and a day before, Mike had disposed of Michael Spinks in exciting and explosive fashion. I was hoping for more of the same with the Ruddock rematch. But, would it happen? Tyson had predicted he would blow away Razor Ruddock very early in the fight. However, he also had said he would beat Buster Douglas so I'm not so sure about his prophecy skills!!

The undercard is incredible as Nelson-Fenech was about the best phone booth war anyone could possibly dream of in a prizefight. I thought Jeff had won the fight pretty convincingly but the judges didn't see it that way and it was scored a draw. Earlier rising contender Riddick Bowe had dispatched of Bert Cooper in explosive fashion. He may be a heavyweight to keep our eyes on as a future contender.

Here we go as Ruddock is on his way to the ring. My Dad had commented that if Mike didn't get him out in the early part of the fight he would have a very tough time with him. Thats what I was concerned about! Mike is now on his way to the squared-circle and he has a very determined look in his eyes. If looks could kill Razor would be dead within 5 minutes!! Tyson starts out very cautiously and tries to bob & weave his way in. I was kind of hoping for a 1st round KO. I couldn't wait for Mike to get his shot at Holyfield. All throughout this round I was chanting, "June 27th, June 27th, June 27th!!!" I thought by chanting out the date of the Spinks fight I'd give him the strength to recapture the form he had on June 27, 1988..LOL!! After all, it was June 28th Now I wonder what I was thinking about that concept! I suppose I was just a kid and kids have some strange thoughts. But a 1st rounder was not meant to be.

Round 2 starts and Mike gets more aggressive but doesn't get carried away. He tries to pick his shots and lands an immense overhand right that reminds me a bit of the Marciano Suzy Q. Ruddock is downed but up quickly, though. Tyson gets a couple really good shots in including his famous right to the body/right uppercut combo he is so famous for. But there's a break in the action as the ref gives Ruddock a chance to get his mouthpiece back. Round 3 has Razor putting some good punches together and landing some good ones. But Mike seems immune to any adverse effects. He seems to be very finely trained as he was in the previous fight. The fourth sees another aggresive stint by Ruddock but this time Tyson catches him with a very good straight right that deposits him on the seat of his pants. The next few rounds have some very good back-and-forth action but not with a very fast pace for some reason. Tyson puts on a good flurry in the 6th that looked as though it could be the beginning of the end. But, it wasn't to be.

It goes on and on. Now we're in the 11th!!! Ruddock comes on very strong and Mike looks to be in some trouble. Oh NO Not very good for a Tyson fan. Giachetti screamed at him in the corner for him to get it together. For some reason he seems a bit out of it. I thought to myself that this was sad. He seems as though he's losing interest and not performing up to his potential. The fight goes all 12 rounds and Mike wins. My friend Ricardo implied he thought I was crazy to think the decision was right but he may have been joking. It was a really good fight but there were a couple of low blows toward the end which I didn't understand why they happened. I'm sure they were just accidental. The topic of the interview with Tyson seemed to be based on the assumption that his skills were eroding. I'd say it's pretty obvious he's not doing some of the things he used to. But, nobody's perfect!