25 Years Ago Today: Iron Mike Tyson KO'ed By 42-to-1 Underdog Buster Douglas!

1CK1S
1CK1S Members Posts: 27,471 ✭✭✭✭✭
0219_large.jpg

February 11, 1990
Location: Tokyo Dome, Tokyo, Japan

"Iron" Mike Tyson 220½ lbs

Vs.

James "Buster" Douglas 231½ lbs


https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=R8z0xoMze8U

*The Ring Magazine named Tyson vs. Douglas Upset of the Year for 1990.

Tyson made over $6 million and Douglas got $1.3 million.

Douglas entered the fight as a 42-to-1 underdog.

Douglas' mother suffered a stroke and died 23 days before the fight. Those around Douglas sensed a new resolve when he went back into training after his mother's funeral. He was dedicated like never before.

Douglas controlled the fight from the beginning, working behind a strong jab on the outside and tying up Tyson when he got inside. This was Tyson's third fight without Kevin Rooney, his long-time trainer, and the incompetence of his new trainers, Aaron Snowell and Jay Bright, was never more evident. Tyson's left eye started to swell by the fifth round, but Tyson's corner didn't have an enswell, a standard piece of equipment for any corner, so Snowell filled a latex glove with ice and put that on Tyson's eye between rounds. Teddy Atlas, Tyson's former amateur trainer, said, "Those two guys couldn’t train a fish to swim.” With six seconds left in the eighth round, Tyson dropped Douglas with a right uppercut. Douglas got up at the count of nine and that was the end of the round. Douglas regained control in the ninth round and wobbled Tyson with a left. In the tenth round, Douglas hurt Tyson with a right uppercut, then followed up with a combination, finishing with a left that put Tyson down for the first time in his career. Tyson put his knocked-out mouthpiece in backwards and tried to get up, but his legs were too wobbly. Referee Octavio Meyran waved the fight over and wrapped his arms around the rubbery-legged Tyson.


The end of Iron Mike as we knew it

tyson-douglas.jpg
81338811-boxing-wbc-wba-ibf-heavyweight-title-closeup-gettyimages.jpg?v=1&c=IWSAsset&k=2&d=GkZZ8bf5zL1ZiijUmxa7QSOluQ01SjT7ilSOwbxxDNDUlV2QzjFkBFMSRocpGVLE

Comments

  • D. Morgan
    D. Morgan Members Posts: 11,662 ✭✭✭✭✭
    If any of yall were related to Buster Douglas and knew how well and hard he trained for this fight and heard the rumors about Tyson not really training and being sick.

    Would any of yall put at least $100 down on Douglas to win at 42-1 odds?
  • silverfoxx
    silverfoxx Guests, Members, Writer, Content Producer Posts: 11,704 ✭✭✭✭✭
    GOAT story. This should be made a movie...like the Black Rocky
  • O.G.
    O.G. Members Posts: 7,555 ✭✭✭✭✭
    Nelson Mandela was released from prison that day but Tyson losing was just as big if not the bigger story at the time.
  • dalyricalbandit
    dalyricalbandit Members, Moderators Posts: 67,918 Regulator
    i hate watching this ?
  • 5 Grand
    5 Grand Members Posts: 12,869 ✭✭✭✭✭
    D. Morgan wrote: »
    If any of yall were related to Buster Douglas and knew how well and hard he trained for this fight and heard the rumors about Tyson not really training and being sick.

    Would any of yall put at least $100 down on Douglas to win at 42-1 odds?

    I remember watching the fight. Nobody even knew who Buster Douglas was.

    I'm not much of a gambler. How does betting $100 work if the odds are 42-1? How much do you get in return if the underdog wins?
  • D. Morgan
    D. Morgan Members Posts: 11,662 ✭✭✭✭✭
    5 Grand wrote: »
    D. Morgan wrote: »
    If any of yall were related to Buster Douglas and knew how well and hard he trained for this fight and heard the rumors about Tyson not really training and being sick.

    Would any of yall put at least $100 down on Douglas to win at 42-1 odds?

    I remember watching the fight. Nobody even knew who Buster Douglas was.

    I'm not much of a gambler. How does betting $100 work if the odds are 42-1? How much do you get in return if the underdog wins?

    If you bet $100 on Douglas you would've won $4,200.
  • ghost!
    ghost! Members Posts: 7,370 ✭✭✭✭✭
    Man ? buster Douglas for beginning the down fall for tyson!

    Ha ha still got feelings over that upset..lol
  • its....JOHN B
    its....JOHN B Members Posts: 19,830 ✭✭✭✭✭
    I'm still eating off that Buster Douglas fight, easiest money I ever made, most people don't know ? about boxing
  • bigev240
    bigev240 Guests, Members, Writer, Content Producer Posts: 10,925 ✭✭✭✭✭
    Just watching what Tyson's corner was doing during the fight was just bad.
  • KNiGHTS
    KNiGHTS Members Posts: 4,435 ✭✭✭✭✭
    Crushed my little kid soul at the time. I remember the whole projects screamed at the same time when Mike got dropped. I remember be gutted by this and wishing death on Buster, the ref, and anybody who said the ref didn't ? him out the fight by not counting Buster out.

    Can't even look at this ? . ? T/S for rehashing this ? . Not really, but yeah really. Ugh...
  • bkzlostchild
    bkzlostchild Members Posts: 651 ✭✭✭✭
    I was 5 when this happen...

    I was sitting with my older cousins & their friends watching it live.....we was all shock in disbelief when Buster knock Tyson out

    Tyson face was just living on Buster"s jab all night..it was a matter of when Buster going to send him to the canvas

    My whole borough was in mourning that day
  • VulcanRaven
    VulcanRaven Members Posts: 18,859 ✭✭✭✭✭
    Sad day in boxing history.