(Tyson in MMA? Two words: Sprawl training.)
Given the amount of painful memories that are packed into his times as a boxer, Mike Tyson doesn’t always seem to have the same glee in discussing his days as a heavyweight terror as we do as fans. That’s why a recent interview he did with This is 50, stands out.
In the third part of the interview “Iron Mike” discusses mixed martial arts and who would have won if he and Muhammad Ali had fought one another in their primes. As he talks about both topics Tyson is full of emotion and obvious glee. The interview is a great glimpse at Tyson. Highlights below and video after the jump.
Would he have fought MMA if it was around when he was in his prime?
“If they had big pay days, yes. No doubt about it.”
“I want to slam, I want to hold ‘em, I want to choke. That’s what you want to do anyway if you’re in a street fight, right? You want to hit him but you want to get him too. You want to get him real good, get him down, get on top of him. So, you’ve got more aspects, you know? If it’s not working this way you can kick him in the fucking head, you know? (laughs)”
If he and Muhammad Ali could have fought one another at 20, who would have won?
“There’s no man like him. There just isn’t. Everything that we have, he supersedes us in it, even our arrogance and our ego. He’s fast but he really doesn’t have any great qualities that you could see besides his agility and not [being] afraid to let punches fly. But other than that, he never threw a body punch in his life, he doesn’t have a good defense — his speed was his defense, he moved.”
“Ali is a fucking animal. He looks more like a fucking model than a fighter but what he is is, he’s like a Tyrannosaurus Rex with a pretty face. He’s just mean and evil and he’ll take you in deep waters and drown you. He’s very special. The best in the world…nobody beats Ali.”
For more of this interview with Tyson, check out This is 50.