When it comes to the world of combat sports, there are a few names that stand tall above the rest. The live boxing legend, Mike Tyson is an undisputed Heavyweight Champion all of the time. Well-known as “Iron Mike”, Tyson has set many personal records in his career and competed from 1985 to 2005. However, there are some unusual and interesting facts about “Iron Mike” many people don’t know. These facts show that Mike is not just an outstanding boxer and creator of a unique boxing technique, but also a multifaceted and complicated personality, an elusive real-life character with many facets.
- There was a video game dedicated to Tyson. The video game Mike Tysons Punch-Out!!! was released in 1987 for the Nintendo console. It was the boxing arcade with the main character Little Mac who fights his way up to the boxing champion. It was a very popular game and sold close to a million copies. After the license to use Tyson expired, the game designers had to replace Mike Tyson with the fictional Mr Dream.
- Mike Tyson has a pretty notable dating history and now he is married for the third time. Since 2009 the boxing legend has been happily married to Lakiha Spicer. His first and second marriages were to Robin Givens and Monica Turner. Mike Tyson is the happy father of seven children. With his current wife Lakiha, Mike is raising two children.
- Popular boxer Mike Tyson loved his wife Robin Givens so much that he did not spare $2 million for her. For such money, he bought his wife a bathtub, although after their relationship began to deteriorate. Even after the divorce, he continued to visit her and spend time with her.
- There is a miniseries “Mike” about Mike Tyson. It was created by Steven Rogers and premiered on the American streaming service “Hulu” in August 2022. However, the miniseries was heavily criticized by Tyson.
- One of the biggest idols of Mike Tyson was Muhammad Ali. Mike Tyson since childhood is Muhammad Ali. They know each other personally and are even friends. Muhammad Ali is the man Mike names as the best fighter of all time and a boxing icon.
- Since 2009 Mike Tyson has been a vegan.He claims that he didn’t just decide to change, he had to change his lifestyle.
- Tyson was the owner of numerous Bengal tigers. He even slept with some of them in his bed but was forced to sell them before his retirement. According to Mike’s recollection, his beloved tiger has been named Kenya, and he has kept her in his home for about 16 years. One day the tiger accidentally knocked his teeth out and attacked his neighbor. After selling tigers Mike Tyson doesn’t have tigers anymore, his pet is a poodle named Mark. Mark even has his own Instagram account.
- There is another video game, Street Fighter II from Capcom, whose creators wanted to use the image of Mike Tyson. To avoid copyright issues, they changed the names of the characters, but left the main character with the phrase: “If you fight like that again, I’ll bite your ear off!” This is a direct reference to the fight between Mike Tyson and Evan Holyfield, during which Mike bit off a piece of his opponent’s ear. It is surely one of the most fierce moments in the history of boxing.
- Mike Tyson changed his name to Malik Abdul Aziz after converting to Islam. According to Mike, he converted to Islam during his incarceration after being convicted of rape. According to Mike, he studied Islam for a long time before he became a Muslim.
- Mike Tyson and Donald Trump are friends, or they are good friends. They met each other because many of Tyson’s fights in the ’80s were held at Trump’s casino in Las Vegas. He became something of an advisor to Tyson.
