Considered one of the greatest boxers of all time, Mike Tyson is a true icon beyond the sporting arena. Famous for his phenomenal power and explosive personality, the Dynamite Kid made his fortune by drawing crowds to his fights. But while he lived in luxury and abundance, the American boxer also suffered heavy losses, as a consequence of his bad choices. Today, he is much more stable and has recovered financially.
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Squandered fight wages
Active at the highest point from 1985 to 2005, Mike Tyson participated in 58 professional fights during his career. These appearances in the ring proved to be very lucrative for the star of the Noble Art. A salary of $35 million for his duel against Lennox Lewis in 2002, and similar payments for his fights against Bruce Sheldon and Frank Bruno in 1996, were enough to keep him out of trouble.
In total, according to the estimates of the Essentially Sports website, Iron Mike amassed $350 million during his career. However, this income was not enough to cover the needs of the ‘Baddest Man on the Planet’. In 2003, he declared bankruptcy due to bad investments and personal excesses.
A fortune now estimated at 3 million dollars
Now cured of his old demons and addictions, Mike Tyson no longer takes drastic financial risks. According to Essentially Sports, he now has a fortune of $3 million. This is a substantial amount earned in part from his marijuana business and his comeback fight against Roy Jones Jr in 2020.
And while he has experienced wealth and poverty, Mike Tyson is content with his current life. In an episode of his podcast ‘Hotboxin’, the ex-boxer confessed that money had never made him happy:
I always tell someone, from my experience, I'm not smart, it's just from experience. It has nothing to do with intelligence. If you think a lot of money is going to make you happy, you've never had a lot of money before. It won't make you happy. If you think it does, it's because you've never had it before. It might make you hate yourself, keep that in mind.
This article is translated from Gentside FR.
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⋙ Mike Tyson: Boxer punches passenger on a plane, this is what made him snap
