Tyson was 13 and Cus D'amato just told him "train like a beast when I give you workouts and sparring partners and teach you how to do in life" Tyson didnt have to make it alone. He had Cus D'amato. D'amato was like his father and trainer. Mike Tyson was just lucky motha****a who met the right person to make him famous in boxing.
Cus didn't hold his body with puppet strings though. It was Tyson who did all the work. Many people are fortunate enough to get opportunities. But it's all about how you respond to them. Tyson recognized and took advantage of the opportunity, and stayed the course. But yeah, all depends on how you're looking at it.
Think about the link of people and circumstances that made that meeting happen. If just one of the links went another way, who knows if there would have been an Iron Mike Tyson. Fate or luck whatever you call it, it stepped in and made Tyson.
Luck is the residual of design. Cus could have shown me the same moves and given me the same advice and I still would have been a weakling in the ring. Don't disrespect the work that Tyson put into his craft.
Motivation/support to someone who had no goals or aims in life other than getting through that particular day was a massive thing for Mike Tyson at that time; it has nothing to do with recognition of an opportunity why he worked so hard, just all to do with feeling a part of something, with the utmost of respect for Cus....he cared for him like he was family!
I think it was an extremely fortunate crossing of paths - and without D'Amato Tyson certainly wouldn't have been the fighter he was, and likely would have been in jail by age 20 - but 'just'? nope. Tyson was a natural athlete with a perfect body for boxing, and his deprived childhood and precarious mental state were the perfect clay for D'Amato to work with. His work rate and study habits were also huge factors. D'Amato also trained hundreds of other fighters - most of their names are names we don't remember today. Jacobs and Cayton also played big parts.
Tyson had all that potential and ruthless ambition. He just was not a boxer until he met Bobby Stewart. Cus, Jacobs and Cayton were just as ruthlessly ambitious too. They had that gateway to offer but you had to have talent to get it.
He had to have had certain physical gifts to begin with, natural power, hand speed ,and an excellent chin.sure Cus developed,and refined the first two but you can't do that if they aren't their to start with! eg I was never going to get appreciably better. I didnt have the dedication or focus, plus my feet were too slow, but 99% of the reason was a lack of talent!Tyson had that innate ability .
Of course Tyson was lucky to have D'amato in his life. Tyson has said so many times. I think almost every great fighter had some mentor. Maybe not one as full-time and single-minded as D'amato but that's not the point. The main thing is the self-belief D'amato instilled in him.
