Mike Tyson has won a lot in his boxing career, but in his private life the American mainly had to deal with losses. He lost many loved ones and went down the wrong path at a young age. Both inside and outside the ring, Tyson was explosive and regularly got into trouble. Now, at the age of 58, he is on the eve of ‘the fight of the 21st century’.

Tyson spent quite a bit of time in prison in his life. That started at a young age. He grew up in New York, in a neighborhood with a lot of crime. Tyson was bullied a lot there and fought it off. By the age of thirteen, the boxer had already been arrested 38 times.

Missing parents

Tyson’s mother died when he was sixteen. His father had already left his life when he was two years old. So he was on his own and decided to focus on his boxing career. When he was eighteen, he made his debut in professional boxing. He won the match with a knockout in the first round. His coaches Cus D’Amato and Kevin Rooney saw a lot of potential in Tyson and immediately set the heavyweight title as his goal.

D’Amato took care of Tyson, who had not yet gotten over the death of his mother. He took Tyson off the streets in his youth and tried to put him on the right path. But in 1985 his trainer died and the then 19-year-old boxer had to deal with another great loss.

The following year, Iron Mike became the youngest ever heavyweight boxing champion at the age of 20. He won the title fight in six minutes. The American had some great years in the ring, but was still violent outside of it.

Convicted of rape

In 1992, Tyson was sentenced to six years in prison for raping 18-year-old Desiree Washington. She was a contestant in the American beauty pageant and was invited by the boxer to ‘a party’. However, Tyson brought her to his hotel room. Statements from Tyson’s driver who took Washington home and a doctor who examined Washington after her report indicated that the rape had taken place.

After his release, Tyson had not completely unlearned his violent behavior. He was therefore also called ‘the baddest man on the planet’. In 2009, the boxer beat up seven prostitutes in a hotel room. In an interview in 2012, he said that this was the lowest point in his life. At the time, he had morphine, cocaine and alcohol in his blood, but stated in the same interview that he had been clean for three years.

Bitten off ear

Tyson lost to Holyfield twice in 1996 and 1997. During the second fight, he bit off a chunk of the heavyweight’s ear. The fight went down as one of the craziest ever. Tyson was disqualified and lost his boxing license, although this was later overturned. He was also given a three million dollar fine.

Marriages

Tyson is now married to Lakiha Spicer. The 58-year-old got married to her in 2009. Before that, the boxer had been married twice. His first wife was actress Robin Givens, that marriage lasted only a year (from 1988 to 1989). During the divorce proceedings, Tyson caught Givens red-handed with actor Brad Pitt. Brad Pitt allegedly begged him not to lash out. From 1997 to 2003, the boxer was married to Monica Turner.

Children

Tyson had a total of seven children with several women. One of them, daughter Exodus Tyson, died in 2009 at the age of four. She got tangled in a treadmill cable. His wife found the girl in the gym, after which she was quickly taken to the hospital. Help was of no avail.

So the boxer had to deal with another loss. And his career also went downhill since his release from prison. He no longer reached his old level. That frustrated him, as his opponent Evander Holyfield knew.

Loss

Tyson also suffered financial losses. During his professional career, he won fifty fights (44 by knockout), and lost eight. He earned about 400 million dollars. However, his spending habits landed him in debt.

Hangover

Tyson worked on his popularity through a number of films. For example, he appeared in the Hangover films, together with his tiger. He stole the show singing in the popular comedies that were released between 2009 and 2013.

Fight against Jake Paul

The 58-year-old boxer still has to work hard. Now a big fight against the much younger YouTube fighter Jake Paul is planned. That will be broadcast on Netflix and announced as the ‘biggest fight of the 21st century’.

Paul already announced that a lot of money is at stake. “I’m here to earn forty million euros and knock out a legend,” said the 27-year-old friend of skater Jutta Leerdam about the duel.

The fight was originally scheduled for July, but had to be postponed due to Tyson’s medical problems, as he was suffering from a stomach ulcer. The match will now take place on Friday, November 15.