The tenth-round knockout loss to James’ Buster’ Douglas on February 11, 1990, shocked the wits out of the world. With personal problems swarming over through the flanks, the fortunes of Mike Tyson became a narrative of ups and downs. Fifteen years later, he retired. Now a successful businessman, speaker, and well-recognized boxing elder, he reflects on the night at the Tokyo Dome thirty-three summers back. It remains to be seen whether the retrospective strikes a chord with his millions of fans across the globe.

So former UFC Heavyweight champion Francis Ngannou joined Mike Tyson and DJ Whoo Kid in the Hotboxin’s latest episode. The Cameroonian-French fighter took the duo from his early life to the streets of Paris. Then he described his foray into combat sports, especially mixed martial arts. The trio even discussed one of his recent fights with the Surinamese Jairzinho Rozenstruik.

A lesson even during a downfall: Mike Tyson

So, considering him having faced some mean opponents, DJ Whoo Kid spoke about Tyson, mentioning how Ngannou”….went through a lot of ill heavyweights, yo.” The youngest Heavyweight champion joined in, saying, “Yeah, that’s an ill-Heavyweight right there. He’s f***ed you. You saw he was bigger than him.” Then ‘The Predator’ explained how going through various fights made him complacent until a big bout changed his outlook.

Ngannou said, “So the thing is, I get there, and everything seems I get there and everything seems uh easy for me. I was [just] getting there. Uh, I didn’t have no experience but was knocking people out, you know, at some point you kind of like, Um, not put yourself right into it, not push yourself, you know, until I get the Stipe fight….” Calling the match on January 20, 2018, an eye-opener, Francis Ngannou termed his second career loss ‘the best fight of his career’ because of the tremendous amount of learning it gave.

Mike Tyson couldn’t have agreed more as he said, “That’s how I feel about the Buster Douglas fight, yeah, and the best fight in my career.” The verdict, just like the match, is sure to dismay many. Quite a few of his bouts, such as the one with Pinklon Thomas, the Larry Holmes match, or the first fight against Evander Holyfield, may have the honor of topping the favorite list.

The juggernaut that began in March 1985 seemed unstoppable. Roughly a year after his professional debut, Mike Tyson stunned the world. He became the youngest Heavyweight champion in boxing’s history, adding more titles to his kitty. Tyson ruled the division for the next three years until he came up against a challenge from Columbus, Ohio.

Winding Up: February 11, 1990, Tokyo Dome

Though an uppercut found its mark, sending Douglas down, the happiness remained short-lived for Mike Tyson. The former got up within the referee’s count. By the tenth round, the plot turned on its head. A flurry of punches from the Ohioan did the unthinkable, knocking down Tyson. He got up with much difficulty. However, the referee, Octavio Meyran, understood that the fight was over for ‘The Baddest Man on the Planet.’ One of the greatest upsets in sports remains fresh in the memories of die-hards.

Read More: “Disturbing”: Mike Tyson’s Bold Prediction for Tyson Fury vs. Francis Ngannou Causes a Stir in Combat World

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