Iron Mike Tyson arrested

by Adam J. Morris on Dec 29, 2006 11:36 AM CST in News

This is off-topic, I know, but still...Mike Tyson was arrested, according to the AP:

Mike Tyson was arrested early Friday on suspicion of driving under the influence and possession of cocaine after police stopped him shortly after he left a Scottsdale nightclub.

The top five sports headlines that should generate the least amount of surprise in sports fans:

Ken Griffey, Jr., suffers injury, will miss 6-8 weeks
NHL television ratings disappoint
Greg Oden declares for the 2007 NBA Draft
Al Davis (insert any random, ill-advised decision)
Mike Tyson arrested

The thing that I find interesting about this is that, much like with Bo Jackson, I don't think folks under the age of, say, 30 or so can truly appreciate the Mike Tyson phenomenon.

I think it is like when I was a kid, and would see Orson Welles in a wine commercial, or Marlon Brando all fat and sloppy in Superman, and couldn't understand why adults thought they were so praiseworthy.

This no doubt sounds stupid now, but in the late 80s, there were serious discussions about whether Mike Tyson was the greatest heavyweight of all time, particularly after Tyson knocked out Michael Spinks in the first round of their bout. When Tyson was in the ring, the question wasn't whether he would win, but how quickly he'd knock out his opponent, how devastating would the knockout be.

And to go with that, he had what seemed to be the perfect background...a thug kid growing up on the streets, saved from a life of crime by a guard in juvie who saw his potential, trained him, and turned him over to the legendary Cus D'Amato, who molded him into a champion.

Tyson studied old fight films, showed knowledge and respect for the fighters who came before him. He had terrific technique, was a great defensive fighter. In an era when boxers were coming into the ring with elaborate silken robes with their names embroidered on the back, Tyson would come into the ring just wearing a towel with a hole torn in it for his head to fit through.

It is amazing to me to think that it has been almost 17 years since Tyson was knocked out by Buster Douglas. I remember watching that fight...and to this day, it is the most stunning sporting event I've ever experienced.

Tyson's long, dramatic fall has been well documented, to the point that he's almost a caricature, a cartoon version of what he once was. Tyson getting arrested for a DUI and coke possession is so expected that I'm a little surprised it hasn't happened before.

But I just thought it was worth taking a moment to note, regardless of his failings, how great a boxer -- and how incredible a phenomenon -- he was, if only for a few years.

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Comments

I'm only 26

But I remember him as the real deal. It's funny how far one can fall from grace.

you jackin' it?

by chief on Dec 29, 2006 11:45 AM CST reply actions

Tyson

He was so quick. Terrifying guy. There's not a boxer who compares to Tyson in his prime. He was the best, just not for very long.

by debaser on Dec 29, 2006 11:46 AM CST reply actions

here here

sometimes espn classic shows tyson bouts and I've never seen a quicker person. His footwork was just amazing and his punches looked like every fight was fixed because he'd essentially land one blow and the other guy would collapse. Both hands no less.

by ab03 on Dec 29, 2006 11:46 AM CST reply actions

Is that anything like

"Hear, hear!" ?

(sorry, couldn't resist)

by Ed Coffin on Dec 29, 2006 6:42 PM CST up reply actions

i've only heard it aloud

thanks for the correction

by ab03 on Dec 29, 2006 8:13 PM CST up reply actions

Amazing

He was truly amazing. I can remember my friends and I pooling money to buy pay per view to watch his fights and then you never felt like you got your money's worth because the fight ended in the first round.

His power was devastating and if he never left his original trainer, Kevin Rooney, and strayed towards Don King and his people, I think he might have went down as the greatest ever.

by brian mac on Dec 29, 2006 11:46 AM CST reply actions

So true

If it was a Tyson fight, you had damn sure better collect the PPV money before the first bell.

What I remember being most impressed about Tyson was how he would just punch straight through anybody's guard. The other guy could be totally covered up, and he would just drop him w/ that cross/uppercut hybrid he had.

I've never seen anybody else do that, at least not with regularity. He seemed to just lift a guy off his feet w/ that trademark punch of his.

That said, I have to disagree that he would have been the best ever. His dominance was magnified, much like Larry Holmes, by mediocre opponents.

Some day soon, I'll bet they'll develop simulators sophisticated enough to develop footage pitting Ali-Tyson, Johnson-Tyson, etc. That'll be worth a look...

Penalty Box? DONT THINK SO!!!!!!! And i wish everyone could stop writing that crap cause its gay...SUPER GAY!!!! NYTXfan!!!

by Brian Thomas on Dec 29, 2006 4:14 PM CST up reply actions

Totally agree....

He was a great boxer but we'll never know how great because he faced such crappy competition. He was on the front end of the demise of boxing. The 70's were the the last great decade of boxing. Tyson almost kept the sport alive. Instead his flameout turned into the death of the sport for all but a hardcore few.

by bdavison94 on Dec 31, 2006 2:08 PM CST up reply actions

The pre Buster Douglas Tyson

was a brilliant fighter, but I almost prefer the comedy gold of post Douglas Tyson.

"Strippers dude, I tell you, I really respect the cunts now. . . I'm not gonna lie to ya." - Voice of Her Generation, Lindsay Lohan.

by DJCahill on Dec 29, 2006 11:49 AM CST reply actions

Mug shot goodness

http://withleather.com/photo.phtml?post_key=1827&photo_key=400

you jackin' it?

by chief on Dec 29, 2006 11:55 AM CST reply actions

haha, oh my god...

that is worth posting directly:

Troy I.

by tdi1985 on Dec 29, 2006 12:26 PM CST up reply actions

I'm gonna eat your children.....

Gotta love Tyson and his quotes.

by boomer1 on Dec 29, 2006 12:03 PM CST reply actions

"i'm gonna gut him like a fish"

perfect timing too.

too bad he lost that fight

by ab03 on Dec 29, 2006 12:27 PM CST up reply actions

Pity

Of all the althletes that fell from glory or were disgraced (Pete Rose, Kobe, etc.), Tyson is the one I feel sorry for. He was a man-child. His sense of right and wrong was skewed by the fact that he came from the streets, and then when he made it, the people that surrounded him did nothing to help him as a person, but instead just used him, and Tyson was mentally powerless to recognize it or stop it. Once he was used up, they threw him away.

There was an ESPN.com interview (maybe the sportsguy) in which Tyson said that the one thing that made him happy was being on the roof of his building with his pigeons. He'd be up there until 5:00 a.m., just watching them fly around.

If karma exists, Don King should be scared sh**less.

Texas Rangers: baby step to 2007. Baby step to 2007.

by WyoRanger on Dec 29, 2006 2:02 PM CST reply actions

Lots of athletes have similar stories

I don't know that I feel sorry for any of them, but I can at least try to understand that many of them came from horrible neighborhoods and might not have had very good parents.

That said, wasn't Tyson convicted of rape? That's pretty bad. So is biting a hunk out of somebody's ear. He may have some antisocial tendencies.

http://tinyurl.com/vxkvz

by Dustin on Dec 29, 2006 2:07 PM CST up reply actions

As my 3year old would say when asked a question

uh, yes and no. I think Tyson's rags to riches story is different than most. The atmosphere he came from is the same, but the atmosphere that he entered was different than most. When a guy enters the NBA, NFL, or MLB he is joining a team that it run by paid employees that have experience in raising a "man-child" in the sport. Tyson entered the management of people who were interested in self gain and there was no ceiling to the amount of money they could make off the "man-child". Let's say Tyson was an NBA phenomenon. He is drafted by the Bulls and watched over by Phil Jackson. There is nothing for Jackson to gain by exploiting his young talented player. When Tyson entered the boxing world he entered it bent over a barrel. Don King and his cohorts have all the power. There was not a team to care for Tyson's future.

Sure Tyson is responsible for his own actions and should pay for those mistakes, but his story does garner some sympathy from me.

The best thing about this is that he was arrested today by a sheriff that has a reputation for being the toughest sheriff in the country. In this sheriff's prison the prisoners sleep in tents. They are dressed in an old fashion striped jump suit with pink underwear and socks. We will see.

I may not be a baseball GM, but I am a thinker. (a play on a Glenn Beck catch phrase)

by kwellborn on Dec 29, 2006 5:46 PM CST up reply actions