The Mike Tyson tattoo has been the subject of fascination for media and commentators who have offered various interpretations and analyses of its meaning. Tyson’s tattoo has been featured in countless articles, interviews and discussions.
Tyson’s winning streak came to an end on February 11, 1990, when he lost his championship belt to boxer Buster Douglas in Tokyo, Japan. Tyson, the clear favorite, sent Douglas to the mat in the eighth round, but Douglas came back in the tenth, knocking Tyson out for the first time in his career.
Tyson was 20 years old and hoping to become the youngest ever heavyweight champion. Today he says he never would have been in that ring if it weren’t for trainer Constantine “Cus” D’Amato, a man Muhammad Ali once called “the bible of boxing.” Tyson says D’Amato is the reason he had such a legendary career. He’s also the reason NPR visited Tyson’s home in Las Vegas.
Um dos desenhos animados mais famosos do mundo, “Os Simpsons”, tem um personagem inspirado de Mike Tyson: o boxeador Drederick Tatum. Na série, Tatum se tornou campeão mundial dos pesos-pesados e, posteriormente, cumpriu pena na prisão. Após sua libertação, lutou contra Homer (personagem principal do desenho), em uma clara alusão a nomes pouco conhecidos que Tyson enfrentou na volta aos ringues.
Meaning: The boxer went under the needle in the year 2003 by the tattoo artist, Victor Whitmill. The tribal tattoo is inked on the left side of Tyson’s face. This unique design stirred some commotions like lawsuit and trials when ‘The Hangover’ movie doctor’s character ‘Stu Price’ depicted a temporary tribal tattoo with the same design as Tyson’s tattoo on his face.
I was excited on the ride back to Tryon. I was sitting with a bunch of Cus’s roses in my lap. I had never seen roses in person before, only on television, but I wanted some because they looked so exquisite. I wanted to have something nice to take back with me, so I asked him if I could take some. Between the smell of the roses and Cus’s words ringing in my ears, I felt good, like my whole world had changed. In that one moment, I knew I was going to be somebody.
The gold caps on his teeth are gone, as are the frenzied trappings of celebrity: the nonstop partying, the cars, the jewelry, the pet tiger, the liters of Cristal. Mike Tyson — who was once addicted, by his own account, “to everything” — now lives in what might be described as a controlled environment of his own making, a clean, well-lighted but very clearly demarcated place. The 44-year-old ex-heavyweight champion is in bed by 8 and often up as early as 2 in the morning, at which point he takes a solitary walk around the gated compound in the Las Vegas suburb where he lives while listening to R&B on his iPod. Tyson then occupies himself with reading (he’s an avid student of history, philosophy and psychology), watching karate movies or taking care of his homing pigeons, who live in a coop in the garage, until 6, when his wife, Lakiha (known as Kiki), gets up. The two of them go to a spa nearby where they work out and often get a massage before settling into the daily routine of caring for a 2-year-old daughter, Milan, and a newborn son, Morocco; they also run Tyrannic, a production company they own. It is a willfully low-key life, one in which Tyson’s wilder impulses are held in check by his inner solid citizen.
“You would think Tank is a brawler, but he really is a boxer-puncher. He moves well. He moves his head well. He can beat you all kinds of ways. He can knock you out. Or he can box you. Cruz reminds me the most of who I was. He comes at you with bad intentions. And he keeps coming at you. He gave Tank his toughest fight. Right now, I hope the younger kids wear the Tyson Pro equipment because it is the best—not because it has my name on it. My biggest concern, and my most important concern is the safety of the fighters, and to make sure they’re protected.”
We went through a couple of gates to get there, then his wife, Kiki, welcomed us and showed us to a casita near the pool. Mike Tyson came in slowly and stiffly — maybe a sign of all those years in the ring — wearing tight (read: hipster) jeans. He’s smaller than you’d think, and trim, with delicate hands.
After several successful fights, Tyson came head-to-head with his next big challenger: Evander Holyfield. Holyfield had been promised a title shot against Tyson in 1990 before Douglas defeated Tyson. Instead, Holyfield fought Douglas for the heavyweight title on October 25, 1990, and beat his opponent by knockout to become the new undefeated, undisputed heavyweight champion of the world.