Mike Tyson.

Mike Tyson. I INTRODUCTION Mike Tyson, born in 1966, American professional boxer who became the youngest heavyweight champion in history at the age of 20. Known for his explosive power and quick knockouts, Tyson dominated boxing in the late 1980s. In the 1990s his career was sidetracked by personal problems and criminal charges, including a rape conviction and imprisonment. II EARLY LIFE Michael Gerard Tyson was born in Brooklyn, New York, to a single mother. He was in trouble with the law from a young age. In 1979 Tyson was sent to a juvenile reform center. There he began boxing and was discovered by Constantine "Cus" D'Amato, who had trained heavyweight champion Floyd Patterson and lightheavyweight champ Jose Torres. D'Amato took custody of Tyson and became his legal guardian in 1981. Tyson thrived under D'Amato's discipline, studying boxing history and developing a fiercely aggressive style. In 1985, after just 26 amateur fights, Tyson turned professional. He ran off a string of 15 straight pro victories that year (all knockouts) and earned the nickname Iron Mike. Also in 1985, however, D'Amato died, leaving Tyson without a steadying influence. Controversy and trouble would follow the volatile fighter during his subsequent career. III CHAMPION In 1986 Tyson knocked out Trevor Berbick to win the World Boxing Council (WBC) heavyweight championship. The following year he unified the world heavyweight title by defeating James "Bonecrusher" Smith for the World Boxing Association (WBA) title and Tony Tucker for the International Boxing Federation (IBF) crown. Although he was criticized for lacking finesse, Tyson's ferocious approach and devastating punches ended most fights early. From 1987 to 1989 Tyson successfully defended his title six times, including a win over former champion Larry Holmes and a 91-second knockout of the previously undefeated Michael Spinks. Boasting a 37-0 professional record, Tyson suffered a shocking defeat to James "Buster" Douglas in 1990 and lost his titles. He recovered to win four more matches but was convicted of raping a beauty pageant contestant in 1992. After serving three years in an Indiana prison, Tyson was released in 1995 and returned to boxing. The following year Tyson defeated Frank Bruno to regain the WBC title. He then knocked out Bruce Seldon in 109 seconds to capture the WBA crown. But later that year Tyson suffered the second loss of his career, an 11th-round knockout by Evander Holyfield. In a 1997 rematch with Holyfield, Tyson was disqualified in the third round for biting both of his opponent's ears. IV DECLINE After being banned from the sport for a year, Tyson returned in 1998. Despite further troubles with the law and within boxing--he served three months in jail in 1999 on an assault charge and several times had trouble getting a license to fight--Tyson won six bouts over the next three years. In 2002, attempting to become the only heavyweight to hold a championship belt in three different decades, Tyson lost in the eighth round to champion Lennox Lewis. Tyson also struggled with financial problems during his career, suing several of his managers, including powerful and controversial boxing promoter Don King. Despite hundreds of millions of dollars in fight earnings, he was forced to declare bankruptcy in 2003. In 2004 a Tyson comeback effort failed when he was knocked out in the fourth round by lightly regarded British fighter Danny Williams. In June 2005 he lost another fight against a little-known opponent and announced his retirement from boxing. The loss left Tyson with a career record of 50 wins and 6 losses with 44 wins by knockout. Microsoft ® Encarta ® 2009. © 1993-2008 Microsoft Corporation. All rights reserved.