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MOSCOW, RUSSIA NOVEMBER 28, 2017: American former professional boxer Mike Tyson at the Synergy Global Forum at Moscow’s Olimpiysky Arena. Valery Sharifulin/TASS (Photo by Valery SharifulinTASS via Getty Images)

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MOSCOW, RUSSIA NOVEMBER 28, 2017: American former professional boxer Mike Tyson at the Synergy Global Forum at Moscow’s Olimpiysky Arena. Valery Sharifulin/TASS (Photo by Valery SharifulinTASS via Getty Images)
Former world heavyweight champion, Mike Tyson, is the perfect example of a person who reinvented himself. Tyson has in fact transformed himself from a fear-invoking heavyweight to a gentle and empathetic human being. However, there is no denying that a young ‘Iron’ Mike was a completely different animal. To put it lightly, he can be best described as a loose cannon. As such, Tyson was once asked to pay up USD 45,000 after facing a lawsuit for one of his many altercations.
This Day in NY Sports: Mike Tyson fought Mitch Green at The Garden https://t.co/wRMVfev8Th pic.twitter.com/pJk6KiOsB0
— New York Post (@nypost) May 20, 2022
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He faced boxer Mitch Green at the Madison Square Garden Arena in New York City on May 20, 1986. The bout titled ‘New York Is Busting Out’ saw Tyson winning by decision. It was, however, not as famous as the street altercation that took place two years later.
Tyson was the Undisputed Heavyweight Champion when the high-profile street fight took place on August 24, 1988. Green, who was seriously injured in the fight, filed a lawsuit against Tyson for alleged assault and battery.

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LAS VEGAS, NV – MARCH 16: Heavyweight fighter Mike Tyson fights Frank Bruno in a scheduled twelve round WBC heavyweight title fight March 16, 1996 at the MGM Grand Garden Arena in Las Vegas, Nevada. Tyson won the fight by TKO in the third round. (Photo by Focus on Sport/Getty Images)
Although he had initially asked for a USD 100,000 settlement, the six-person jury in New York State Supreme Court reduced the settlement to 55% of the amount asked. They stated that Green had provoked Tyson first, leading to the altercation.
After winning USD 45,000, Green even went on to taunt Tyson. He said, “I’m the winner, I whupped him.”
READ MORE – Is Mike Tyson Suing Hulu After “Disgusting” Revelation?
A protection order was later filed against Green, barring him from going near Tyson for 30 days.
Mike Tyson was scared that he killed Mitch Green
Mitch Green was already angry at Mike Tyson after their fight in 1986. He stated that he was underpaid by Tyson’s promoter, Don King. Meanwhile, Tyson was outside a clothing store named Dapper Dan’s in Harlem when he was confronted by Green.
It is also reported that Green had an ulterior motive for confronting Tyson. Green, who was part of a notorious New York-based gang at that time, believed that ‘Iron’ Mike had stepped into his turf.
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On this date in 1988, Mike Tyson beat up boxer Mitch Green on the streets of Harlem.
“I thought I killed him, I was so scared … I was so happy the next day in the papers they showed his eye, because I knew he wasn’t dead then.” pic.twitter.com/b1CVraLOpe
— Timeless Sports (@timelesssports_) August 24, 2020
He approached Tyson and started shouting obscenities at him. What followed was one of the most infamous beat downs in street fight history. Tyson also claimed that Green had ripped his shirt pocket, forcing him to retaliate. Moreover, after Tyson was done, the aggressor ended up with a brutal facial bruising, a nasty cut on the bridge of his nose. And a left eye that was swollen shut.
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In the aftermath, he also mentioned that he was scared that he had accidentally killed Green. Was it a stupid idea for Green to confront ‘The Baddest Man on the Planet’? Share your thoughts below.
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