MIKE TYSON has revealed that he “felt himself dying” after he had piled on the pounds following retirement.
And the “Baddest Man on the Planet” has also shed light on his biggest health fear.
Tyson took the boxing world by storm in the 1980s with his explosive style and lethal power earning him the nickname “Iron Mike”.
He still holds the record as the youngest world boxing champion, having won his title at the age of 20.
The American became WBC world champion in 1986 and soon added the WBA and IBF titles to his WBC crown, making him the undisputed champion of the world.
In 1990, he suffered his first defeat when he lost to James “Buster” Douglas in Tokyo and then his boxing career was put on hold in 1991 when he was sentenced to six years in prison for a sexual assault.
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When he returned to the ring in 1996 he won the WBC and WBA titles with wins over Frank Bruno and Bruce Seldon.
The two-time heavyweight champion lost successive fights to Evander Holyfield in 1996 and 1997 before a crushing defeat to Lennox Lewis in 2002.
Two further back-to-back defeats against Danny Williams and Kevin McBride led to Mike Tyson calling time on his boxing career in 2005 with a record of 50 wins and 6 losses, with 44 of these victories coming by knockout.
He went on to star in Hollywood films The Hangover and The Hangover Part 2, starring alongside Bradley Cooper and Zach Galifianakis but during that time away from the ring he piled on the pounds and says he was at the 400lb mark.
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And during his latest episode of Hotboxin with Mike Tyson podcast he opened up about the time he was obese.
He said: “I felt myself dying. You know I know what it’s like. I’ve been 400 pounds before.
“I had family members that died of obesity and stuff like that.
“I’m scared of that stuff, I stopped eating, I’m scared, I saw what people in my family went through. That’s my biggest fear. Obesity.”
Tyson, who made a stunning return and got in incredible shape for an exhibition bout with Roy Jones Jr in 2020, also recently open up about death.
He said: “We are all going to die, one day, of course. When I look in the mirror, I see those little spots on my face. And say wow that my expiration date is coming close really soon.”
Source: Boxing - thesun.co.uk
