Why a Prime Mike Tyson Ran Away From UFC “Death Match”?

Published 04/10/2022, 3:30 PM EDT

Mike Tyson created history as the world’s youngest heavyweight boxing champion in the nineties. At the same time, the world witnessed the rise of the Gracies. The Gracie brothers once challenged Mike Tyson to a face-off when he was considered “The Baddest Man on the Planet”.

According to the article that emerged in The Sun, “[Tyson] was challenged by the Gracie Brothers, in particular Royce, back in the early 1990s. The UFC champion’s perception was that Tyson was the best boxer in the world, but he refused to accept that Tyson was the best ‘fighter’ “.

“The Gracies had a point. They had been beating all-comers from various styles long before the Octagon was first engineered.”

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” In 1997 the Gracie’s challenge made the headlines again, after the publication of a one-page advert in Men’s Health in America, in which the UFC champion once again challenged the former heavyweight boxer ‘officially’. Anywhere, anytime, no rules!”(The Sun)

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Using their Brazilian Jiu Jutsu, the Gracie brothers defeated all pioneering fighting styles and practitioners from around the world. They were on a mission to demonstrate Jiu Jutsu’s domination over other styles and practitioners.

Tyson was arguably the finest heavyweight boxer of his era. However, while the Gracie brothers acknowledged this, they wanted to show the world that he wasn’t the ‘best fighter’ in the world.

A new version of Mike Tyson after retirement

“The Baddest Man on the Planet” turned into a whole new person after his retirement. Tyson changed his persona and became a much calmer version of himself.

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The veteran boxing champion previously had a pet tiger in his prime, which he replaced with pigeons as well as became a vegan. He opened a ranch in California and called it the Tyson ranch. He started growing weed for his personal use and ended up starting his own Cannabis brand, Tyson 2.0.

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Tyson hosts his popular Podcast ‘Hotboxin’ with Mike Tyson’ and has starred in mainstream movies, comedy shows, and even in the animated TV show Mike Tyson Mysteries.

Who do you think would win if the fight had happened between Tyson and Gracie? Let us know in the comment section below.

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Written by:

Vinay Vinod is a UFC writer for EssentiallySports. As a state-level amateur kickboxer and a national-level karate athlete, he prides himself on his ability to read fighters and make an in-depth analysis into the fight styles of athletes across traditional martial arts and combat sports. Considering Vinay's martial arts background, he is an ardent supporter of Israel Adesanya, Stephen 'Wonderboy' Thompson, and Lyoto Machida.

Edited by:

Paras Pande

Why a Prime Mike Tyson Ran Away From UFC “Death Match”?

A new version of Mike Tyson after retirement

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