31 years ago today, Mike Tyson fought in his first fight since being released from prison.
Over the last year, Mike Tyson has been heavily linked to another controversial return to the boxing ring, this time to take on Floyd Mayweather.
Although the fight was initially rumored to take place in Africa, earlier this year, a new date and location was confirmed after legal filings.
Despite that, there is still no clear indication whether a fight between the two legend’s will happen, with the majority of boxing fans hopeful that it doesn’t.
Do you think Mike Tyson vs Floyd Mayweather is going to happen?
After a blockbuster announcement, the trail seems to have gone cold on Tyson v Mayweather. Do you reckon it will go ahead, and if it does, who wins?
Tyson’s first fight since prison release was 31 years ago today
31 years ago on August 19, ‘Iron’ Mike made one of the most highly anticipated returns in sporting history, when he took on Peter McNeeley at the MGM Grand Garden Arena in Las Vegas.
The fight was of huge significance because it was the first time the then-29-year-old was stepping back into the ring since his arrest in 1992.
Four years prior in 1991, Tyson completed the double over Donovan Ruddock, scoring his fourth win in a row after his shock loss to Buster Douglas.
The event was being billed as ‘He’s Back’, and he was originally supposed to fight George Foreman in a super fight but they ended up landing on little-known McNeeley instead.
What was more than likely a warm up fight for Tyson lasted only 89 seconds, as he returned to the ring with a bang, showcasing why he was the most feared man in the sport.
However, it didn’t end without its controversy. McNeeley began the fight by being extremely aggressive, attempting to put Tyson in an uncomfortable position in his first fight back.
But less than 10 seconds in, ‘Iron’ Mike landed a big right hand that dropped his American opponent.
McNeeley managed to beat the referees standing eight count and the fight resumed shortly after. Again McNeeley attempted to put pressure on Tyson and the two exchanged a flurry of punches in the corner.
20 seconds later, though, Tyson landed a big uppercut that once again sent McNeeley to the canvas. Hurt from the exchanges, McNeeley once again made it to his feet.
However, his manager Vinnie Vecchione stepped onto the apron and then subsequently entered the ring, resulting in the fight ending in a disqualification.
Following the fight, Tyson admitted that he was still trying to mental adjust from life after prison, and just a year later, he went on to reclaim his WBC heavyweight title.
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