07/23/2020 - 16:55
- Clarín.com
- sports
Legendary former heavyweight champion Mike Tyson announced Thursday that he will return to the ring at age 54 for an exhibition match against fellow 51-year-old Roy Jones Jr. on September 12 in Los Angeles.
"I AM BACK", Tyson wrote on his Twitter account along with a video of one of his workouts at the gym.
YO SOY. BACK. #legendsonlyleague. September 12th vs @RealRoyJonesJr on #Triller and PPV #frontlinebattle @TysonLeague pic.twitter.com/eksSfdjDzK
- Mike Tyson (@MikeTyson) July 23, 2020Tyson, who has been out of the ring for 15 years after a loss against Irishman Kevin McBride, will face Roy Jones Jr. in an eight-round match at the Dignity Health Sports Arena in Los Angeles, according to a statement posted on his website. new sports project, "Legends Only League".
The text says that the fight, which can be followed by the Pay per view system , has the approval of the California state athletic commission, but did not specify whether public access or other details of the fight will be allowed.
"It will be amazing," Tyson said in a video call with ESPN in which he minimized the risks of either him or Jones suffering a serious injury, noting that California state rules will require both of them to wear a helmet for the fight. "We are both accomplished fighters , " he said. "We know how to protect ourselves. We will be fine."
Tyson ended his career with a balance of 50 wins and 6 losses with 44 knockouts , while his rival, who last fought in February 2018, has a record of 66-9 with 47 knockouts.
Jones Jr. was world champion in four categories between 1993 and 2004, first at medium and super-middleweight and then at medium-heavyweight until briefly holding the WBA heavyweight belt.
Tyson promised that the match will be competitive and not just a show. "We are going to show our skills and fight," said Iron Mike , who stressed that he wants to regain the formidable physical form that he exhibited in the past. "He will look 100% like Mike Tyson in the ring," he said.
The Brooklyn fighter claimed he wants to demonstrate how older people can still cause excitement in the sports realm. "This is because I can do it and I think other people believe they can do it," Tyson said. "We are not finished. Someone says that older people are finished, but they have more fans than the boys who are training now."
This claim is one of the ideas behind "Legends Only League", an event-producing platform with which he wants to relaunch former stars of various sports. Among them, Tyson mentioned former NBA figures Dennis Rodman and Allen Iverson.
Tyson became the youngest heavyweight champion in history at 20 years and four months when he defeated Trevor Berbick in the second round in 1986 to win the World Boxing Council crown. Within a year, Tyson was already the undisputed champion of the division, earning himself the nickname "The Baddest Man on the Planet" and reaching a record of 37-0.
But in February 1990, in Tokyo, he suffered a surprising 10th round knockout loss at the hands of James Buster Douglas. It was just the beginning of his bad times.
Tyson was later arrested for rape in 1991 and sentenced in 1992. He served three years in prison before being released in 1995 and returned to the ring.
He managed to regain the title but then twice fell to American Evander Holyfield, and was disqualified the second time for biting his rival's ear , costing him a suspension that kept him out of boxing for 18 months.
The boxer had one last shot at the heavyweight crown but lost to Brit Lennox Lewis in 2002, and retired after falling six rounds against Kevin McBride in 2005 in his last bout, just days after his 39th birthday.
"I've been through some experiences and now I'm back," said Tyson. "I have been taking care of my body," he added. On September 12, he will fulfill his dream - and that of many others - of getting back into a ring.
(Source: AFP)