The five who managed to knock out Mike Tyson

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Mike Tyson is an outstanding boxer and one of the heavyweight greats of professional boxing. No one knows what would have happened to his career and if he wouldn't have become the greatest of all time if it weren't for his mental problems and excessive drug use. But many are of the opinion that Iron Mike was the greatest talent in boxing history. His statistics of 37 consecutive victories and 10 consecutive world title defenses prove this, but a series of horrific decisions, a rape conviction and a number of other factors make the zenith of his career sad.

However, in his memorable career he recorded an outstanding 50 victories, 44 of them by knockout. However, he also suffered 6 defeats – 5 by knockout (or TKO). It is precisely these losses that we will consider now.

On the eve of the fight, there are a lot of problems for Tyson - he has fired his manager Bill Kyton and trainer Kevin Rooney, and on top of that he has been left by his wife Robin Givens. Also, Zheleznyi didn't give much away in training before the duel, as he was convinced that he would crush Douglas - as he has done with his last 30-plus opponents.

The clash did not go as Tyson expected. Buster skillfully uses his speed as well as his longer arms to orchestrate the fight in his favor. In the 8th round, however, Tyson manages to deliver a memorable series that sends Douglas to the floor, but he gets up and does what he wants with Tyson in the next two rounds. The climax occurs in the 10th round. A visibly tired Tyson lands a brutal uppercut, followed by a heavy series of 4 hooks that send him down. The referee counts to 10 and for the first time in his career, Tyson is knocked out. To this day, the ultimate winner of this fight is considered one of the most shocking in the history of the sport.

After the defeat by Douglas, Tyson recovered quickly and again generated a bunch of victories, including two over one of the most feared representatives of the heavyweight division - Donovan Ruddock. Everyone is looking forward to the match with Holyfield, but then Mike goes to jail. After his return to the ring, Holyfield had already given up the sport, but in November 1996 he agreed to fight Iron Mike. In an epic duel, the two traded brutal blows, but Holyfield's class was undeniable. In the late rounds, his advantage was serious, and in the 11th round he crushed Tyson so much that the head referee was forced to stop the fight, awarding victory to Holyfield by technical knockout.

In the summer of 1997, the two faced each other again, but then in the 3rd round, Tyson bit off part of Holyfield's ear and was disqualified.

Difficult years followed for Tyson, who, although winning, was criticized for his crazy life outside the ring, which also affected his performance in the sport. Two of his matches were "cancelled" - one case was due to a violation of the rules, and the second - due to the use of prohibited substances. However, on June 8, 2002, he got a chance to be the absolute champion again, facing Lennox Lewis. The Brit completely dominated the fight, inflicting many injuries on his opponent. In the 8th round, Tyson is barely on his feet when with a quick left-right straight combination, Lewis sends Iron Mike to the floor covered in blood. The referee counts to 10 despite Tyson's attempts to stand up - KO for Lewis. After the match, Tyson himself recognized the total superiority of the then absolute champion in the division.

Tyson's personal life at that time was at its lowest point, and a year earlier he even declared bankruptcy, although he had earned tens of millions from boxing. In 2004, he tried to return to the ring in an attempt to regain his form, although he was already 38 years old. His opponent is Danny Williams and Tyson is the absolute favorite in the clash, although far from his best condition.

In the opening rounds, Zheleznyi looks like himself - with speed and a lot of power, he controls the fight, but in the 4th round, Williams makes a surprising turn. In the middle of the round, he lands heavy blows on Tyson, and Mike, for his part, barely moves around the ring. 30 seconds before the end of the round, Williams managed to break Tyson's guard with an excellent uppercut that caught the former champion off guard. What follows is a hellish streak - 15 consecutive accurate hits to the head of Tyson, with the last straight right sending Tyson straight into the ropes. The referee counted to 10 just before Tyson got to his feet, but even if he had slowed his count, Mike would not have been able to continue this fight - a knockout loss.

After the match, it becomes clear that Tyson has entered the ring because he needs money. He was unable to fight as he had a torn cruciate ligament in his right knee. In practice, he was on one foot in this fight, and it is a miracle that he was able to fight at all on that June evening.

This is the last match of Tyson's career. In his documentary, Iron Mike admits that he entered the ring only for the money and did not expect to win. However, he shows serious heart in the match, trying to box like he knows how - with a lot of power. At times he succeeds, even managing to bleed McBride. However, the Irishman is much better prepared, and in the 6th and 7th rounds he runs over Mike with heavy straight shots. In the 7th, he even got to a knockdown, but Tyson was "saved" by the gong. However, after the break, Tyson decided not to enter the ring for round #8 - an end to the match, a TKO in McBride's favor and a sad end to Tyson's memorable career.