How many of you here in Bismarck/Mandan had the same idea that I had last Saturday night? I was looking forward to this spectacle for quite some time, on November 28th Mike Tyson was going to enter a boxing ring for the first time since his shocking departure back in 2005. After battling a mediocre-at-best Kevin McBride for six rounds, he stopped his career right then and there. "I don't have the stomach for this anymore, I'm not an animal" he explained to an even more shell-shocked television audience. That was the end.

Or was it?

In Los Angeles, at The Staples Center, 54-year-old Tyson faced off against 51-year-old Roy Jones Jr - another boxing superstar of the past. This was made clear to all that it was entirely an exhibition match - there were specific rules going in, only two-minute rounds instead of three. There would be NO official winner, and with any bad cuts visible on either fighter, the bout would end. I knew that prior, but I found myself thirsting for the pageantry of a good old fashioned heavyweight fight. I remember like it was yesterday, on the edge of my couch watching all the pre-fight rituals - in the locker room before the fight, the smack talk, and then the tension building as each boxer was led to the ring with a HUGE Las Vegas crowd.

This was not it. Sure it still cost a pretty penny to watch the fight on TV - just over $50 bucks, all the flare was not there. The rap artists and songs leading up to the big event were classless at best - I shook my head at how AWFUL it was. The actual fight itself was really to be expected - two men way past their prime huffing and puffing, going at it. After eight so-so rounds, it was over. The end result was laughable - A DRAW - but then again, they said from the start there would be no winner, so no big deal, right? I'm not even going to comment on Snoop Dogg being there. I was pissed, disappointed by what a dope I was to waste my money - UNTIL I read the very next day from Talksport.com. Mike Tyson won't receive a penny “It’s going to be for various charities, nobody has to ever worry about me getting rich, or getting jealous, or saying I’m doing [the comeback] for money - I’m not getting anything. I just feel good doing this because I can"

Whether you believe Mikle or not, I hold on to the notion that people can change, and suddenly my negativity became quite positive. Money well spent!!!


 

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