“I’m not afraid to waste my life” Mike Tyson loses his cool talking to reporter after Francois Botha fight
Follow Us
Mike Tyson
Mike Tyson was once the scariest man on the planet. The world had not seen a boxer with ferociousness like Mike and his post-fight interviews were a sight to see.
Tyson was always known to lose his cool against his critics as he continued to knock down his opponents inside the boxing ring. Tyson has many infamous moments where he has threatened reporters and the media for writing ill about him. One such moment took place during his post-fight interview in the boxing ring in his fight against Francois Botha.
After being banned from the sport for nearly a year and a half for his controversial boxing match against Evander Holyfield, Mike made his return by taking on former IBF heavyweight champion Francois Botha on January 16, 1999. During Tyson’s time off from fighting, the media had turned against him talking about his sanity as a boxer.
Mike was asked by a reporter if he would ever lose his anger and try to keep his calm during his future fights and the reporter triggered the animal inside Tyson which led to an infamous rant in the history of boxing at the MGM Grand in Las Vegas. “I need respect, you show me respect and stop writing trashy articles about me, then I’ll show you respect,” said Tyson answering the reporter’s question.
“I’m human being and I need love” Mike Tyson responds to the media’s criticism
“I’m a man. Listen! I’m not afraid to die. I’m not afraid to waste my life because when I die, I am going to Paradise,” said Mike in the post-fight interview. “No one’s going to disrespect me and no one’s going to write nonsense about me without retaliating back.” Mike was one of the most controversial fighters to ever grace the boxing ring.
Tyson experienced fame at the tender age of 20 as he became the WBC, WBA, and IBF heavyweight champion. There is an evil side to having everything in life at the age of 20. “I’m a man and I can only take so much. I am not gonna sit back and take all of this punishment. I’m a human being and I need love just like everyone else.”
Watch the full Mike Tyson’s iconic interview after his Francois Botha fight below:
Stay Updated!
Prateek Athanur
(2957 Articles Published)