Mike Tyson: The Top 10 PR Highs/Lows and Quotes From The Great Boxer's Career
Eric Streller@1weekfantasyContributor IIOctober 1, 2010Mike Tyson: The Top 10 PR Highs/Lows and Quotes From The Great Boxer's Career
Mike Tyson, The Baddest Man on the Planet, has had a life filled with plenty of highs and even more lows. Not many people can truly understand what actually goes through Iron Mike’s mind, but I think everyone will agree that it’s very intriguing, even if that is in a negative way. Here is a look at the top 10 highs, lows, and quotes from Tyson.
Top 10 PR Lows
There are literally hundreds to sort through here, mostly run ins with the law, but this is a list of the top 10 things that gave the public and the media their negative outlook on one of the best heavyweight fighters to ever live.
10. Tyson Blows Up at NJ Athletic Control Board
(1998) Tyson appeared before the New Jersey Athletic Control Board in an attempt to get his license back so he could fight again. All went well for the most part as he fought off tears in an effort to show his remorse for his actions in the Evander Holyfield fight. When continually questioned about the incident, Tyson finally had enough and began cursing at regulators. Tyson’s attempt to gain sympathy from the public and media backfired as soon as his tirade started.
9. Tyson Can't Stand Being Rear Ended
(1998) When Tyson’s Mercedes Benz was rear ended in Maryland, his quick temper was on full display. Supposedly, Tyson kicked the driver in the groin and punched another man in the face. This just added further fuel to his image as a hot head, who was unable to control himself. He would end up being sentence to a second round of jail time for this incident.
8. After The Bell and Referee Gets Knocked Down
(1999/2000) In his first fight back after his second jail term, Tyson proved that nothing had changed and continued to damage his image after he punched Orlin Norris after the bell of the first round, ending the bout as a No Contest. Less than a year later, Tyson knocked down a referee in an attempt to keep Lou Savarese after the fight was stopped. It appeared that Tyson no longer could control himself in the ring.
7. Lennox Lewis Leg Bite
(2002) At the press conference for his fight against Lennox Lewis, Tyson once again used his teeth. As a melee broke out between Tyson and Lewis, Tyson was seen on the bottom of the pile biting Lewis’ leg. For a man who had been publicly crucified for biting a fighter before, this was a PR nightmare.
6.Tyson Throws in The Towel
(2005)Tyson failed to come out for the seventh round against Kevin McBride, the last fight of his career. Tyson said “I don’t have the stomach for this anymore. I most likely won’t fight anymore. I’m not going to disrespect the sport by losing to this caliber of fighter”. This was hard for a generation to swallow, because no matter how much you loved or hated him, it was hard to come to realization that this was the end of Iron Mike’s career.
5.Suicide Attempt
(1988)Tyson drove his BMW into a tree in an apparent suicide attempt. This was the first big red flag in his career. This was just the first of many issues to come.
4.Tyson's Wife Accuses Him of Domestic Violence
(1988) Tyson’s wife, Robin Givens, and her family publicly accused him of domestic violence. This may have been what led to the previous event. It’s never good for your image when your wife and her family accuse you of something like this on a public stage.
3.Upset For The Ages
(1990) In one of the biggest upsets boxing has ever seen, Tyson was knocked out by James “Buster” Douglas. This was more than likely part of the domino effect that led to the demise of Mike Tyson. At this point of his career most everyone thought the man was untouchable.
2. Tyson Bites Evander's Ear Off
(1997) Tyson bites off Evander Holyfield’s ear. We all remember this one. Tyson, who says he was frustrated from a intentional headbutt by Holyfield, resorted to snacking on his opponents ear. Tyson would be disqualified in the third round. This is probably the most well-known incident of Tyson’s career.
1. Tyson Is Convicted of Rape
(1991) Getting a 10 year prison sentence for being convicted of rape takes the cake. The judge ended up suspending four years and Tyson only ended up serving three, but this destroyed his career and his image. Whether or not the accusations were true, Tyson would never completely recover from this and it will always be a legitimate question whether or not he could have been the undisputed best heavyweight boxer of all time.
Top 10 PR Highs
You’ll probably notice that most of these highs are from the past couple years. With the type of career and life that Tyson had, it’s hard to find many highs in the mix, because there were always lows to outweigh them. The top five all come from the past two years, simply because he hasn’t followed them up with anything to negate the positive actions. Tyson has seemed to take a step in turning his life around and most of his positive moments have came in the past two years. Hopefully it will continue and this man will do all that he can to make up for all the mistakes of his past.
10. Tyson Is Back!
(1995) In Tyson’s first fight back from his prison term, he knocked out Peter McNeeley in 89 seconds. This put any doubts that Tyson would be rusty to rest.
9. Tyson's First Professional Victory
(1985) In his professional fight, Tyson knocked out Hector Mercedes in the first round. This was the start of a great, but troubled, boxing career.
8. Tyson Is Back... Again
(1999) It seemed that Tyson’s career was over after Tyson chomped off Evander Holyfield’s ear and spent some more time in jail. However, Tyson knocked out Francois Botha after a two year layoff related to the previous incidents. After the fight, Tyson admitted to trying to break Botha’s arm during the fight.
7. Tyson Becomes Youngest Heavyweight Champ Ever
(1986) Tyson knocked out Trevor Berbick to win the WBC heavyweight title. This made him the youngest heavyweight champion in history at just 20 years of age. There’s not much better for a boxer’s PR team than becoming the champion and doing something that had never been done before.
6. Tyson Becomes Undisputed Champ
(1988) In the richest fight to date, Tyson knocked out Michael Spinks in 91 seconds to become undisputed linear heavyweight champion. Many people thought this would be a battle as some considered Spinks to be the best heavyweight fighter in the world.
5. Tyson & Tupac
(2010) Tyson is showcased along with Tupac in ESPN’s 30 for 30 and shows off a bit of his soft side. Tyson allowed himself to be a bit vulnerable and it was a step in the right direction in restoring his image.
4. Tyson on WWE Monday Night Raw
(2010) Tyson appeared on WWE Monday Night Raw as a guest host to team up with Chris Jericho in a tag team match. A lot of people watch WWE Monday Night Raw, and this was a very crafty way to get Tyson in the public eye and force some people to like him.
3. Tyson Dances With Bobby Brown
(2010) Tyson appears in a video spoof of Bobby Brown’s Every Little step alongside Brown and Wayne Brady. This video shows off some of Tyson’s goofy side and it’s something that everyone wants to see. Even for those that hate him, it portrays him in a positive manner. Click here to check out the video.
2. Tyson Goes on The View
(2010) Tyson appeared on “The View” and was as candid as he could be. This is what he had to say: “I’m totally destitute and broke. But I have an awesome life, I have an awesome wife who cares about me. I’m totally broke. I had a lot of fun. It (going broke) just happened. I’m very grateful. I don’t deserve to have the wife that I have; I don’t deserve the kids that I have, but I do, and I’m very grateful.” This showed a side of Tyson that was never seen. He was actually sincere in saying that he knows he’s screwed up and doesn’t deserve what he has, but you get the idea that Tyson seriously doesn’t want to screw it up and do the things that have tainted his past.
1. Tyson in The Hangover
(2009) The Hangover. Tyson's appearance in the mega-hit movie was a huge PR boost. He was portrayed as a tough guy, but it was comical. People got to see Tyson in a role opposite of their favorite actors and they couldn't help but enjoy watching him on the big screen.
Top 10 Mike Tyson Quotes
This is hard to narrow down, because there are plenty of them. Some of these may even shock you if you haven’t seen them before. However, these are intended for your comical viewing, because you can’t help but laugh at the same time you’re wondering how someone could actually say something like this.
Top 10 Mike Tyson Quotes Cont.
10.) “I could feel his muscle tissues collapse under my force. It’s ludicrous these mortals even attempt to enter my realm. “
9.) “I think I’ll take a bath in his blood.”
8.) “I try to catch them right on the tip of his nose, because I try to punch the bone into the brain.”
7.) “I want to rip out his heart and feed it to Lennox Lewis. I want to kill people. I want to rip their stomachs out and eat their children.”
6.) “I’m not Mother Teresa, but I’m not Charles Manson, either.”
5.) “Real freedom is having nothing. I was freer when I didn’t have a cent. Do you know what I do sometimes? Put on a ski mask and dress in old clothes, go out on the streets and beg for quarters.”
4.) “A lot of young women don’t know what they’re getting themselves into. A lot of them think it’s fun, a game. But they truly don’t know what they’re into when they lock themselves into a room and engage in sex with a man who knows how to handle a woman.”
3.) “It’s no doubt I am going to win this fight and I feel confident about winning this fight. I normally don’t do interviews with women unless I fornicate with them. So you shouldn’t talk anymore … Unless you want to, you know.”
2.) “I wish that you guys had children so I could kick them in the f**ing head or stomp on their testicles so you could feel my pain because that’s the pain I have waking up every day.”
1.) “I feel like sometimes that I was born, that I’m not meant for this society because everyone here is a f***ing hypocrite. Everybody says they believe in God but they don’t do God’s work. Everybody counteracts what God is really about. If Jesus was here, do you think Jesus would show me any love? Do you think Jesus would love me? I’m a Muslim, but do you think Jesus would love me … I think Jesus would have a drink with me and discuss … why you acting like that? Now, he would be cool. He would talk to me. No Christian ever did that and said in the name of Jesus even … They’d throw me in jail and write bad articles about me and then go to church on Sunday and say Jesus is a wonderful man and he’s coming back to save us. But they don’t understand that when he comes back, that these crazy greedy capitalistic men are gonna kill him again.”
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