MIKE TYSON and Dana White were left in hysterics when they recalled the boxing legend’s appearance on Shark Week.
The former undisputed heavyweight champion took part in a series of underwater challengers on the Discovery Channel show in 2020 – in which he put a shark to sleep by tickling its nose.
UFC president White used his contacts to get Tyson on the show to stop the boxing legend – whom he considers a close friend – from returning to the ring.
Tyson initially questioned his pal’s regard for his safety when getting him the gig, which they couldn’t help but laugh about during a recent catch-up.
Iron Mike said: “I said, ‘He cares about me?’ This n***a cares about me? He wants me to get hurt, he put me in there with a shark.”
MMA mogul White said: “I called him up and I said, ‘Dude, I don’t want you to do this f*****g fight, man.
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“‘This is f*****g crazy. I’ll get you a job on TV, I’ll get you a TV show [and] you’ll make some money.’
“So I put him on Shark Week. And he was like, ‘Wait a minute, you care about me?
“‘You tell me not to fight and you put me on f*****g shark week.
“‘Yeah, you really care about me.'”
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Tyson, 56, admitted to being a bag of nerves ahead of filming, and his nervous energy put the entire crew on edge.
White said: “So the day he had to jump in and do the shark thing, I guess he was f*****g going crazy, he was pissed off and the whole film crew is terrified.
“Everybody was scared. He had to dive into the water and swim with these sharks.”
Tyson recalled the experience during a recent chat with UFC commentator Joe Rogan, saying: “My wife thought it was a good idea too.
“I said, ‘Y’all m***********s don’t care about me.’ They don’t give a f**k about me. My wife said, ‘That’s a good idea.’ What?”
White’s attempts to stop Tyson from fighting again failed as the legend returned to the ring in November 2020 for a clash with fellow great Roy Jones Jr.
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Tyson rolled back the years and turned in a stellar display against the former four-weight world champion.
Iron Mike flirted with the prospect of lacing up his gloves again last year but has yet to commit to fighting again.
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Source: Boxing - thesun.co.uk
