<i><a href="http://espn.go.com/boxing/news/2002/0602/1389903.html"><b>Tyson surprises demonstrator outside fitness center</a></b> Associated Press MEMPHIS, Tenn. -- Mike Tyson hugged a demonstrator Sunday who shouted "stop homophobia'' at him. Tyson, in town to fight heavyweight champion Lennox Lewis next Saturday night, got out of a sport utility vehicle outside a fitness center and walked over to nearby gay rights activists. "I was shouting stop homophobia and holding up my sign, and then he just came up and hugged me and said he wasn't homophobic,'' said Jim Maynard, vice-chair of Equality Tennessee and one of three demonstrators. "I was totally shocked,'' Maynard told The Commercial Appeal. "I didn't really know what to do. So I just posed with him and smiled for the cameras. It's a step in the right direction.'' Tyson signed autographs for approximately 20 people and then went inside for his workout. After Tyson finished his session, he got in the vehicle, rolled down the window and said, "Listen. Listen. I'm not homophobic; I told them I'm not homophobic. So if I use a homophobic term ... I'm not homophobic.''</i>
Off topic: I can't wait till June 8th. I remember becoming a Tyson fan after playing Nintendo's Punch Out. I don't remember a lot of about his early days, but I've followed his career since his release from prison. There's something about Tyson that makes me root for him no matter what he does. I don't know. I want him to become Heavyweight Champion again.
Yeah, i want Tyson to win too. I saw something the other day that most of the media doesn't show us the public. Did anyone see him knock out that German guy (name escapes me). Well as soon as the guy was called out on the count, Tyson goes over along with the ref and the other guys trainers to help pick him up. He embraced him and check to see he was alright!!!! Believe it or not you tyson haters, he actually showed a "soft" side to him. I mean how many boxers go over to see if the guy is ok after they've beat their brains out, LET ALONE MIKE TYSON?! Well, I thought it touching. As I said, you don't see images of Mike doing that very often....errrrr, well ok he's a bit psycho, but still. BTW: think I'll see the fight at one of those girlie bars...
Once again proving. .. if you have talent . . . . people will forgive ANYTHING . . . . Omen River "As long as you say you're sorry . . .she will listen to your story" - Eddie Murphy
I stood outside of Tyson's hotel with a sign that said "STOP CANNIBALISM"! He hugged me, and I was left in awe of his celebrity. "So what if I sink my teeth into people, that is not how I really feel deep down inside", said Tyson. The crowd cheered, and everybody went to a trendy coffee shop for a moderated discussion about Lance Bass and his heroic trip to the Russian space station.
My dad is a huge boxing fan...not as much today as he used to be...but he still knows the sweet science better than anyone I've ever met. I remember one day he asked me if I had seen this Mike Tyson kid fight...he said he had never seen a guy punch so hard in his life. He said you could see the fear in the other guy's eyes when he hit them in the stomach. Sure enough, I watched the guy fight, and my dad was right. So I rooted for him very early on.... By the time he got to Michael Spinks, I was rooting AGAINST Tyson. Spinks was the ultimate lay-down job, and I really lost my faith in boxing (misplaced faith, I guess, to begin with!). My father and I rooted like crazy for the ultimate underdog, Buster Douglas...I'll never forget jumping up and down with him in the living room as he was knocking Tyson down...and watching him be counted out, I really felt like I was watching history in the making. Since then, Tyson has been a joke to me....he's been so little about real boxing...and so much about all that's wrong with boxing. I miss the Sugar Ray Leonard, Tommy Hearns, Marvin Hagler, Roberto Duran days of the middleweights. And the heavy weight game seems so ridiculous to me now.
Lewis is the first challenge Tyson has faced since Holyfield, and we all know what happened there. If Tyson goes crazy or gets KO, I'm gonna be Reportedly he already bit Lewis on the leg. If Tyson wins, I'm gonna go crazy! btw, who is the underdog in this fight?
I would say that Mike Tyson's main problem is his sanity and inability to accept "No" from young women, not his intolerance for gays.
It seems to me that perhaps Tyson has a multiple-personality disorder. We fist have "Mike" -- there have been times when he seems to be totally cool, and an okay person. Some who know him claim that he's deep and sensitive. Then we have "Iron Mike" who rapes women, beats up old men, eats people (or tries), and shouts profanity at reporters. Or maybe he just has a short fuse, but it seems to me that he does have some sort of personality disorder.
Somehow, the idea of Mike Tyson being anything-phobic seems strange to me. I'm sure there are some tough gays out there, especially some of the biker lesbian chicks that were in Austin this weekend, but I'd have to take Tyson over any of them in a fistfight. He's got less to lose and he's been doing it longer.
you know... up until a few months ago i always thought that tyson's scandals and public persona were 60% his PR people and 40% his actual nuttiness... i always thought that his PR people knew he was a tad off his rocker, but used that in order to put Tyson's name in the papers and ultimately make more money... but after the PR firm quit a few months ago, you have to think all the stupid things Tyson does and says is 100% him... how crazy must he be for a company to give him up (and the millions he makes) as a client?
How many heavyweight championships are there? Lewis is the WBC, IBF, and IBO heavyweight champion. Is he the undisputed heavyweight champion? "My style is impetuous, my defense is impregnable and I'm just ferocious. I want your heart. I want to eat your children. Praise be to Allah." ~ Mike Tyson
The thing about Tyson that strikes me is that early on in his career, everyone watched him to see him knock somebody out. Nowadays, it seems like everyone watches him to see if he will go nuts. His skills have greatly diminished over the last 10+ years, but he still has skills. For him to beat Lewis, he will have to knock him out within the first 5 rounds. If it goes longer than that, Lewis will win.
I wonder what story or incident caused this protest? Or perhaps the fact the he may use the word "***" alot? Well, this is just gonna be a crazy fight and one of the most exciting "leading up to" fights in a LONG time! Heavy weight boxer Mike Tyson hugs gay wrights activist Jim Maynard as he arrives at his training gym at Cadova in Memphis, June 2,2002.
Not to rain on everyone's parade, but is anyone else a little disturbed by all this? In our society, we claim to want to help and protect the mentally ill... unless someone can make lots of money off watching to see how crazy they go. We claim to have gotten rid of the violent "sports" that previous generations watched for amusement... except for one where guys punch each others' heads in. But, hey, it's always fun to watch the brain damage later, right? (they always say I take things too seriously )
