March 6, 1985 – 18 year old Mike Tyson defeats Hector Mercedes in a technical knock-out (TKO) in his professional boxing debut. Tyson went on to become one of the greatest heavyweight boxers of all time, winning 50 of his 59 fights, with 44 KOs.
May 11, 2005 – after sustaining significant injuries and failing to answer the seventh bell, thereby losing by technical knockout against Kevin McBride, Tyson retired after 20 years in the ring.
Tyson revealed that he did not return to the ring because he had lost passion for the sport, claiming he entered the fight for the payday, knowing he was not going to win. Tyson’s life was just as brutal outside the ring as he was in it. He struggled with substances, and was arrested on multiple different accounts as well as incarceration for crimes in 1992, serving three years of his six year sentence. While definitely not the hero of the story, Tyson’s attitude towards his actions reveal shame and true remorse, and has claimed multiple times he has hated his fan-made pedestal.
While writing his book “Fighting Tyson: Fifteen Fighters, Fifteen Stories, journalist Ted Kluck sat down and talked with him, finding him to be unbelievably thoughtful and introspective, almost self-critical.
“He understands his own sin,” Kluck said. “I don’t think he sees his need for a redeemer though.”
Kluck believes that Tyson thinks that to atone for his wrong, he needs to do more right. As a believer, Kluck prays that Tyson would arrive in a place of repentance and faith.
Nov 15, 2024 – former heavyweight champion Mike Tyson, now 58, comes out of retirement after being challenged by 27-year-old YouTuber-turned-fighter, Jake Paul, in the most controversial fight of the 21st century. While there were concerns about his age, fans were ecstatic, waiting to see the legend shine again. Others were scared to see “Iron Mike” fall at the hands of “The Problem Child”.
Like the nickname suggests, Paul has either had trouble or been trouble.
Paul has been in the public eye since 2013, starting his rise to fame through social media platform, Vine. Following his older brother, Logan Paul, he launched a YouTube channel that quickly became known for pranks and hip-hop tries, and was later hired to play a character on Disney’s “Bizaardvark” – essentially as himself.
After a 2017 noise complaint and a class-action lawsuit from Paul’s neighbors, he was let go from Disney. Since then he has encountered numerous ventures, from music and business ventures, to professional boxing. While his “crimes” are mainly social debacles disrespectful to others, Paul carries himself as king of his own world, unfazed by haters, seeing no wrong in his actions, even at the cost of almost being cancelled.
For many Gen Z’ers, the Paul brothers are a true reflection of (often polarizing) worldviews. Some see the brothers living the American dream, building autonomy and starting businesses, and others see them as simply guys who are trying to stay relevant, chasing a dream of fame and legacy while using others as a good laugh.
Attitudes from both Paul and Tyson ranged from mutual fighter respect to abhorrent and crude smack-talk, however fans were more critical of Paul. People saw Paul’s confidence disrespectful to Tyson, disregarding anything Paul did to train or prove himself. Others felt that Tyson was foolish for indulging in Paul’s fantasies.
On Friday night, Paul did what he knew to do best, entertain. Million dollar sparkly, silver trunks, a slow entrance on a low-riding convertible, a pigeon as a gift for Tyson. While fighting professionally may be his end goal, right now his action are still showing, “gain the love and respect of a community any means possible until I sit the top, or I die.” He still feels very much like kid making YouTube videos, but know he has one of the largest streaming networks on his side.
After 30 minutes of shuffling around the ring, Tyson lost to Paul via unanimous decision. A tangible mood hung in the arena and living rooms across America and the world. As Paul sprayed his own line of drugstore cologne, Tyson staring blankly and tired into the camera, fans around the world hung their heads and went to bed.
The weird venue, weird fight and weird streaming platform made for an overall weird result. Kluck watched the fights as a dark cloud slowly crept closer. With the lack of punches from Tyson mixed with Paul’s over-charismatic demeanor, it was hard for longtime fans of Tyson and of the sport as a whole.
“I knew it was going to go that way,” Kluck said. “I knew it was going to be a gentleman’s agreement between two rich guys deciding to get richer. But I still allowed myself to hope.”
He was not alone. The whole country was hoping.
Even though they did not grow up seeing Tyson’s ring glory, there is still an instilled sense of awe and reverence for his talents and ferocity amongst the younger generations. Gen Z fans showed support for Tyson, hoping he would put a cocky Paul in his place, especially after he pulled up in million dollar sparkly shorts to beat a fight that he statistically could not lose.
For Paul and Tyson, the fight was a double edged sword. Paul winning means he just beat up a man twice his age and way past his prime, Tyson’s loss left a bitter taste in everyone’s mouths – how could he let us down? Even if the result was what people wanted, it would have been just as bad. Paul losing would have meant that he cannot even fight a man 20 years out of practice, and Tyson winning would have had fans wondering, why did he leave all those years ago? Both men are striving for respect, either from themselves or the outside world.
“By and large these guys both failed, in that regard,” Kluck said. “Friday had the potential to move both of them forward, but did the opposite.”
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