Mike Tyson gave a surprising answer when discussing the toughest sport in the world during a recent appearance at the Dallas Cowboys Stadium.
The former heavyweight champion gave an on-field interview before the Cowboys lost significantly to the New Orleans Saints at the same venue where he fights Jake Paul on November 15. Speaking to NBC, Tyson was asked, “Do you see some parallels between NFL Football and boxing regarding toughness, mental discipline, and preparation?”
Instead of declaring his own sport the hardest, Tyson leaned towards the game he could watch.
“This is a tough sport—probably the toughest sport ever. It’s interesting. I don’t care how great you are, how good you are—you are going to get hurt and hurt badly.
“You have to worry about a guy who is four hundred pounds hitting you from the back. He could paralyze you. This is really manly, macho stuff. It’s heavy stuff,” said Tyson.
Previously, Tyson had opened up about his own training with Cus D’Amato, a mentor who put him through the wringer to make a young Mike the best he could be. It worked as Tyson became the youngest top-division ruler ever.
Speaking to Tennis star Nick Kyrgios on his podcast, Tyson said, “It was beautiful but hell [training with Cus]. Yeah, that’s what it was. Beautiful, but hell. He didn’t give nothing free. It was all about extreme discipline.
“That’s why when I got older, I said f**** discipline. It was all about extreme discipline. If you had a problem, something about with yourself, you have to change it. Find a way to change your self-hate to self-love. And it’s all about discipline.
“Discipline, doing what you hate to do but doing it like you love it. I also saw him never have a family. In my upbringing, I learned. I grew up in the streets. Everything goes.”
Tyson’s comments before the NFL interview always pointed to boxing being the loneliest, darkest place a man could be placed. It seems the NFL has since overtaken pugilism despite many believing it’s a lot safer than it used to be.
Read all articles and exclusive interviews by Phil Jay. Learn more about the author, experienced boxing writer, and World Boxing News Editor since 2010. Follow on Twitter @PhilJWBN.
