On this episode of The Sofa King Podcast, we hit you with a right hook of research and talk about the rise, fall, and rise again of Iron Mike Tyson. Mike Tyson was born in Brooklyn, New York to a poor family and spent his youth in pretty bad neighborhoods. He was a shy kid with a speech impediment, so others of course bullied him. The first fight he ever got in was allegedly with another boy who tore the head off of one of his pet pigeons! By the time he was 13, he had been arrested over 30 times and lived a life of robbery and gang banging.

He got sent to a boy’s home to rehabilitate, and there one of the staff introduced him to boxing. Seeing Tyson’s amazing, innate abilities, he was turned over to Cus D’Amato, a famous trainer. D’Amato was known to take troubled teen boxers in to his training compound to live and find discipline, and he did so with Tyson. The goal was to get Iron Mike into the 1984 Olympics, though he fell short due to a defeat.

From that point, Mike Tyson went pro and started his record run of victories in the ring. He was known for his ability to earn quick knockouts. In fact, he won 26 of his first 28 fights to knock outs! From there, he became the youngest champion in the history of boxing and the first ever to unify all three boxing titles. His wealth and fame were legendary, as were his debauchery and anger issues.

He married the actress Robyn Givens, though he found himself on the wrong side of the law for alleged abuse. He was also arrested for the rape of Desiree Washington and served several years for the crime. Upon his release, his boxing career was back on track, and he fought Evander Holyfield and then fought him again in his famous, ear biting rematch. So, why did Mike Tyson bite off part of Holyfield’s ear? Why did he end up suing Don King for $100 dollars? How much money did Tyson squander over the years? What’s up with his pigeons? What is the story about his proposed weed ranch he’s building in California? Listen, laugh, learn.

Video of Mike Tyson Pissed at a Reporter: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OOhdx1TLutw