The Truth about Mike Tyson.

[tommyhearns804]

We Can Finally Forget About Tyson
Boxing's Biggest Fraud Finally Gives Up
By JIM ARMSTRONG




And so it ends, the latest and God willing last attempt by Mike Tyson to reinvent himself.

Forget the bizarre facial tattoo. The next time Tyson wants to attract a crowd, he'll have to get a sex change, gain 400 pounds and join the circus.

After Saturday night, Tyson couldn't get a gig fighting a one-armed CPA, not that he wouldn't want to if the price were right. Not even the lunatic fringe, affectionately known as Tyson's Trailer Trash, would shell out their hard-earned welfare checks to see him.

He was matched, for one rea$on and one rea$on only, against some nobody named Kevin McBride in a place far, far away from the bright lights of Las Vegas. Trouble is, even a nobody is somebody when standing in the same ring as the Tyson of today. Which is to say, a perfect stranger to the Tyson of yesterday.

Sure enough, after talking the talk in the days preceding the bout, Tyson couldn't walk the walk. He couldn't so much as get to his feet to answer the bell for Round 7. In the end, he was all lisp, no action. He ate his words, but at least he didn't eat anyone's children.

The $44.95 pay-per-view suckers were crying foul, but, for the life of me, I can't figure out why. It wasn't like he was any more pathetic than usual. The last time Tyson was worth watching, gas was a buck a gallon and Bill Clinton was imagining how many chicks would dig him if he became president.

Tyson had long since become more carny act than sweet scientist. His recent fights were must-see TV, provided work was a four-letter word and you had a velvet portrait of poker-playing bulldogs hanging prominently in your living room, right next to the gun rack.

He was more spectacle than spectacular, more sideshow than main attraction. Those who remained loyal to his cause stuck around more out of morbid curiosity than sheer fascination. They watched not so much to see what he could do, but to see if there was anything he wouldn't do.

And now even they're gone. Not that they have a choice. Even if they still considered a Tyson pay-per-view a good excuse to drink Old Milwaukee, he won't be around to embarrass himself more than he already has. There isn't a bowling-alley parking lot in America that would have him


What's he supposed to call himself now that he has lost to the immortal Kevin McBride, barely the heavyweight champion of his own extended family? Iron Mike certainly is out. How about the Has-Been From the Federal Pen?

And while we're on the subject, how would you promote Tyson's next bout? What would you call it? The Brawl in the Bingo Hall? As if anyone not married to his cousin would watch that.

No, it's over, all right. Tyson finally, officially and at long last is yesterday's news, his reflexes shot and his career dead. Once and for all, he can go play with his pigeons and converse with his personalities.

So what's he going to do for a living now that the shill is gone? Beats me, but I'm thinking rocket scientist is out. I have no doubt he could sing Take Me Out to the Ballgame at Wrigley Field better than Jeff Gordon, but that's a one-night stand.

I know. Maybe he can be a stagehand on The Jerry Springer Show. As washed up as he is, I'm thinking he can still handle a crazed mistress swinging a purse at her lover's old lady. And if she started to get the better of him, he could head butt her or try to break her arm, as he did to McBride before wimping out of Saturday's bout.

The question for us real sports fans, the ones who didn't stand in our doublewides and toast our Boone's Farm to Tyson as he bit off Evander Holyfield's earlobe, is how good a boxer he was in the first place. It's not like he ever beat anybody even when he could beat somebody. Sure, he captured the buzz and the belts back in the day, but who was around to do anything about it?


Larry Holmes, you say? He was on the backside of 30, well past his prime, when he encountered Tyson. Michael Spinks? He was an overblown light-heavyweight lured into the ring with Tyson by the smell of cold, hard cash. Trevor Berbick? Please. He was a poor man's Kevin McBride.

Fact is, Tyson is the phoniest fighter that ever was. His management team was careful to dodge George Foreman and Riddick Bowe. By the time he got around to fighting Holyfield, his opponent was a 20-1 underdog. And still, Tyson couldn't handle him. Then came the rematch, when Tyson made sushi out of Holyfield's ear.

So what's to become of him now that even he admits he has fooled his last couch potato? Maybe he'll become a sparring partner for a legitimate heavyweight. Talk about a natural. If there's anything Tyson is good at, it's getting hit.

[buff_mike10]

At his best he was the greatest of our time. Hand speed, head movement, explosive power in both hands. The 88 version would have a chance at beating any heavyweight in history. After leaving Kevin Rooney he fell apart, and now at age 38 he has no chance at beating a 6'6" 270 pound young fighter. You hate Tyson and you have that right, i think he was once a true champion whose prime was cut short by Don King and Deseree Washington. I watched the McBride fight and i would order another one if he fights again. Not that he's great anymore, but just to see what he will do. Bite someone, head butts, elbows, try to break an arm, hit the ref, hit after the bell. He was a top 10 heavyweight of all time, and he will always be the #1 entertainer of all time.

[tommyhearns804]

tyson was the greatest at what buff mike?fighting bums ?beating people who were only in the ring to make him look good?what great fighters did tyson ever beat?nobody just bums and a old larry holmes.nothing is impressive about that.his head movement and handspeed only worked when his opponents were afraid of him.once he was hit it all went away.tyson was a joke.a bum who only fans are stupid cowardly fools who know nothing about boxing.
jeremy williams has alot of ko's against low level competition but just like tyson when he fights any decent opponent he gets knocked out.the ony difference between williams and tyson is williams was never built up by the media and well williams never raped women or knocked them out and robbed them.
foreman ali frazier ect ect ect=greatness .tyson=cowardly rapist who could never beat a decent fighter who wasnt afraid of the hype around him

[Ceratogyrus]

History will judge Mike Tyson more kindly than his contempories. He was a hugley entertaing KO artist who compares favourably with the hardest punchers ever.
Does he make my all time heavyweight top 10? No.
Has he entertained me over the last 20 years? Yes, more than any other fighter.
I have never been so excited before a fight as I was before Tyson-Holyfield 2.
Can he come back? In terms of beating anyone with a pulse, no. In terms of ticket sales, no problem. To give you an example I guarantee if he re-hired Rooney all of the Tyson fanatics would jump straight on the bandwagon (not me though).

[Warhawk46]

My God, how can you possibly say he was a terrible champion? I understand hatred runs deep with some people, and despite overwhelming evidence to the contrary come ignorant people refuse to listen to fact.

Mike Tyson did not beat "bums" his whole career, for one. He fought many talented fighters. The 1980s was a decade with fragmented belts. Larry Holmes was the "champion" in the early 80s, although he actually never became unified champ. Guys holding the belts were talented, big, powerful men. Some had great skills. What seperates them from the glorified 1970s (besides all-time greats like Frazier, Ali and Foreman) was that fighters all fought each other. There were many memorable fights, and that is what sticks in our minds and elevates the 70s to the greatest decade of heavyweight boxing, the "golden era".

The fact that you have generalized an entire man's career into the old "he never beat anyone with a pulse or who fought back" argument validates your ignorance or stupidity, or both. Mike Tyson fought all comers during his first reign. He was as dominant a champion as there has ever been. Only the great Joe Louis (who padded his record 25 defense against the bum of the month club) and the Greatest, Muhammed Ali, have strung together more defences. When Mike Tyson was trained by Kevin Rooney, he was unstoppable. He was perfect marriage of speed, power, defense, and skills. Unfortunately for Tyson, outside forces prevented him from reaching his destined pinnacle.

Although he quickly deteriorated in skills and discipline once he fired Rooney, he was still dominant before prison ruined him for good. He lost the championship to Buster Douglas not because Douglas was a better fighter, but because Tyson had become an undisciplined, no-defense, one-shot headhunter. In short, his incredible skills abandoned him before Douglas bested him. Watch the first Bruno fight to see the same style, then watch him dismantle Trevor Berbick or outpoint the very talented Toney Tucker. There is a clear difference in the fighter.

Although his skills, once honed under the D'Amato style with Rooney, were mostly gone, he had renewed fire after the humiliating loss to Douglas. He came back with two quality first round KO, including an utter dismantling of the powerful Alex Stewart, who the great Evander Holyfield needed seven rounds with. He also fought two memorable fight with Razor Ruddock, the #2 contender in all three bodies (behind champ Holyfield, and Tyson himself). Tyson ruined Ruddock, who was never the same fighter after their wars, and who later fought Lennox Lewis and was unable to provide his previous level of skill before he faced Tyson.

Tyson was away from boxing for nearly 4 years. During his three year prison stint, of which we wont even go into the highly debatable "guilty" verdict, he was not allowed to touch so much as a boxing glove. Muhammed Ali was also banned from boxing during his prime (for refusing to be drafted) but note he continued to hone his skills. He still trained. Tyson did not. Also, Ali was exiled while undefeated, Tyson had one loss, the Douglas loss. However, it should be noted that Ali may have very well lost his fight to the 180 lbs Henry Cooper had Ali's trainer, Angelo Dundee not ripped his glove to afford Ali more time to recover. I guess we will never know if Ali would have lost, but he certainly could have.

After Tyson returend from prison, he was not the same fighter who had previously beaten Razor Ruddock in two great fights. As much as Tyson was not as good as the 1991 version, he was ever farther removed from the disciplined, motivated Tyson of 1985-1988. His skills had deteriorated to such a degree, it is hard to even realize it is the same fighter.

History may not be kind to Iron Mike because ignorant and biased sportwriters often influence simple-minded fans. Mike Tyson could have gone down as the greatest of all champions had he not been lazy and corrupted by excess. However, as it stands he still merits inclusion in the top-10 greatest of all heavyweight champions.

[Slipx]

At his best he was the greatest of our time.

I hope you just realized you owned yourself.

[angelo_dundee]

Dont hate on Brother Tyson. He's real.

[Imira]

I'm still laughing at the "cowardly rapist..." comment. But seriously, Tyson, although he's definitely not an all time great, did breathe life into the heavyweight division. Of his meager accomplishments, that's the best.

[Rspen46]

Posting!

I just recently began to notice, that there are several members here, that have tons of posts on their records, I thought wow, how could anyone take the time to reply write so much, then I began following some of their replies & posts, it appears now to me, that a select few reply post, 1 or 2 liners, just to be posting something, go in & check the guys with much fewer posts than the few I'm talking about, spend the time to type a lot, then you see 1,2,3 or 4 guys jump in & post their 1 or 2 liners that mean nothing to the original post, like yeah, your right, I agree with you, or don't hate on my Tyson, or my guy, LOL.

I posted this here, because it looks like 1 or 2 people with thousands of posts just jumped in to add more posts to their record, how about typing something that means something, people, stop your 1 or 2 short liners just to get posts in.
LOL!

[Scott9945]

I just recently began to notice, that there are several members here, that have tons of posts on their records, I thought wow, how could anyone take the time to reply write so much, then I began following some of their replies & posts, it appears now to me, that a select few reply post, 1 or 2 liners, just to be posting something, go in & check the guys with much fewer posts than the few I'm talking about, spend the time to type a lot, then you see 1,2,3 or 4 guys jump in & post their 1 or 2 liners that mean nothing to the original post, like yeah, your right, I agree with you, or don't hate on my Tyson, or my guy, LOL.

I posted this here, because it looks like 1 or 2 people with thousands of posts just jumped in to add more posts to their record, how about typing something that means something, people, stop your 1 or 2 short liners just to get posts in.
LOL!

What benefit does anyone get from a high post count? Preferential posting privileges? Some posts are short and some are long. Nothing wrong with that.