What if Mike Tyson never fired Kevin Rooney?

I’ve never understood this line of thinking (or excuse-making).

Is the idea that Mike was a virgin before he went to Tokyo? Because if not, how do we know he wasn’t carrying on similarly when he was fighting Michael Spinks and others that he beat?

And for that matter, hasn’t pretty much every fighter who ever lost a professional fight discovered sex by that point? Are we to suppose they’d all have stayed undefeated forever had they stayed chaste, or been eunuchs?

 

If they avoid training, stay out all night every night, catch diseases (like Tommy Morrison did), get out of shape, lost their focus, then yes it's a problem. It's one thing for a guy to have normal sex, it's another to be running around with the opportunity to screw multiple women, some of them celebrities. You are aware of the stories about George Foreman entertaining many African women during training for Ali in Zimbabwe? How did that work out? When you're chasing women you are also drinking, drugging and whatever else you can do EXCEPT focus on training.

Why do you think the old trainers used to say that sex robs the strength in boxers legs? They knew damn well that chasing broads didn't drain strength it drained motivation.

 

Well said.

 

Imo, I dont think its fair to put Tysons demise on Kevin Rooney.
Tyson was an over sensitive emotional wreck who needed constant oversight to keep him focused. First off thats on Tyson and noone else.
Aside from that..
After Cus passed away, Bill Clayton was pushed out soon following Jim Jacobs then Kevin Rooney.
This was premeditated and systematic only after Don King got his dirty fingers into the pie.
The real question to me is would Tyson had continued as a champion for years to come if Tyson had stayed loyal to his original team and stayed clear of King?

 

It’s even more complex, as Tyson’s original team wasn’t exactly loyal to him as much as they were to each other.

Jacobs never told Tyson he was dying, which he knew. But he told his pal Cayton. And arranged for Tyson’s contract to convert solely to Cayton after JJ’s death without Tyson’s knowledge, input or consent.

Meanwhile, Kevin Rooney — who had been told by Tyson not to talk about his personal life and specifically about his wife and marriage to the press … did just that. So he betrayed Tyson’s trust by blabbing in public.

So Tyson had no trust with his so-called team.

 

Think whatever you want about Mike's skill ... he came unraveled right up there with the best of them .. A focused Mike does so much more damage for a long time

 

If JJ was dying thats his decision who wants to share that with. Why would have shared that with a young Tyson?
I dont think that decision wraps up all the years of loyalty before that. It seems it got ugly at the end of that team and Tysons demise came soon after.

 

Has anyone considered the idea that Tyson reached such heights because he was a consummate pro in his early career and in top condition for his bouts, a condition that his opponents could only dream of?

Evander Holyfield said Tyson was the only fighter he ever saw that worked harder than him, coming from the Real Deal that is saying something.

 

"slapping some girls ass."

By all accounts she was an 11 year old child. He touched her and sexually harassed her at a time when he was putting his hands on girls at his school too. No wonder sexual abuse and harassment is so commonplace with views like this still floating around.

 

Unfortunately, that would me more of Mike kissing Kevin on the mouth. Really unnerving.

 

It wasn't some girl. It was his niece. And Cus was warned from the school he attended about his behavior. Cus taught him how to be a great fighter. He never taught him how to be a man.

 

This has to be the stupidest comment ever written on any matter whatsoever. I could have elaborated but chose to be surgical in my reply to appease the author of the initial remarks.

 

To accomplish this, Mike Tyson should have never met Robyn Givens and her looney mother Ruth Roper.