Mike Tyson is best known for his intimidating personality both inside and outside the ring. While most applaud his knockouts and unparalleled ferocity in the boxing ring, not all know about the struggles he underwent early in his life.
Growing up in one of New York City’s violent neighborhoods, Tyson inevitably went on to the path of crime. What started as his way to become better at crime and mugging, ended up with him becoming a world-famous heavyweight champion.
Mike Tyson Was Once A Criminal
Known as the Baddest Man on Planet at one point, Mike Tyson revolutionized the world of boxing with his strength, agility, and speed. His toughness and ironclad willpower led him to accumulate millions of dollars in no time.
Now worth over $10 Million, the former heavyweight champion was once a petty criminal on the streets of NYC. Growing up in Brooklyn’s Brownsville, he lived a life where poverty, crime, violence, and drugs were an everyday thing. Hence to have food on the table, he often found himself committing crimes.
Young Tyson wasn’t even safe at school, since he was regularly bullied, picked on, and subjected to the vilest of treatment. in an interview, he described,
“It’s bad stuff, it’s really bad stuff. People tying people up and doing bad things to ‘em over drugs and stuff. To their family members, just real bad stuff that you don’t even want to mention … Anything you can think of someone did to abuse a human being, they did it there.”
Describing himself as a ‘product of fear’, he credits the experience that made him the man he is today.
Mike Tyson Had To Drop Out Of School Due To Regular Abuse And Bullying
Mike Tyson has had it rough since the very start. In an interview, he revealed how he was subjected to contact abuse and bullying while in school. His life became such intense that he eventually stopped going to school.
“School was over from the start …. Because I stopped going ‘cause everybody was kicking the sh*t out of me at school. So I had to stop going to the school. … So that stopped and … started crime. That’s just what it is.”
Since he was an unemployed young man, and also a school dropout, the only thing that remained was a life of crime. And hence, there was where he ended up.
“Can’t go to school no more, can’t get an education, you go to crime.”
And that is how he started learning boxing. He wanted to grow stronger and fight better so that he could take on more crimes. But instead of a life crime, boxing became his way to escape.