MIKE TYSON has relived the moment Frank Bruno hit him with a bomb so hard it made him see a white light.
The 22-year-old Baddest Man on the Planet was at his terrifying best when he defended his undisputed heavyweight champion status against the brave Brit in 1989.
Frank Bruno landed a brilliant left hook on Mike Tyson in their 1989 classic battle.Credit: AP:Associated Press
Bruno was floored after just 12 seconds of the fight – a flash knockdown he put down to nerves.
But moments later he connected with a left hook that almost changed the course of boxing history.
Tyson was hurt for the first time in his career and staggered forward desperately crowding the Englishman and cleverly blocking him before landing more concussive blows.
The ruthless American recovered and stopped Bruno on his feet in the fifth with a trademark blitz attack.
But, in a new Friday night Sky documentary, Tyson remembers those scary few seconds when South London’s gentle giant almost knocked him spark out.
“I just went out in the first round and tried to knock him out but he was taking the shots I was hitting him with,” Tyson said.
“He came back with a couple shots and he was fighting really good.
“As a matter of fact, he staggered me with a really good shot in the first round.
Mike Tyson weathered Bruno’s first round storm and roared back to stop the brave Brit with a trademark attackCredit: Getty Images – Getty
“It was like electricity hit me, I saw a white light.
“You don’t even know if you are out or not, you think you might be down but you don’t even know.
“It was like I just walked into a bomb.
“Bruno was at his best at that time, that was a tough fight for me.”
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Tyson’s career and personal life unraveled shortly after that win, taking him to prison for a three-year rape charge.
Bruno would suffer more heartache inside the ropes but he finally became the WBC world champion in 1995 when he beat Oliver McCall at Wembley stadium.
Just six months after that iconic night for British sport, Bruno rematched Tyson again and was this time savagely stopped inside three rounds.
The loss drove Bruno into an early retirement that he struggled to handle and led to mental health problems.
But the 59-year-old national treasure now looks back at all of his wins – and losses – as a wonderful experience.
“I missed the fighting when I had to retire,” Bruno told SunSport.
Mike Tyson and Frank Bruno go back 40 years and two fights but remain kindred spirits
“My trainer George Francis said ‘Life after boxing will be your hardest fight’. I didn’t know what he was talking about but as soon as I retired I knew exactly what he meant.
“When Father Times comes and the doctor tells you to retire, you have to listen. But they were not good times for me.
“If you stop driving a car every day, you still have to take care of it or it will rust and stop working, you need to keep running and maintaining yourself and I stopped doing that.
“I had good and bad moments in boxing, suffered defeats as well as wins, but I look back on them as all fun times now.”
Bruno v Tyson is available on Sky Documentaries and NOW TV from tomorrow, Friday 26th February at 9pm
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Source: Boxing - thesun.co.uk
