A multiplicity of wild theories have been proferred over the years to try to explain how Mike Tyson could have possibly lost to Buster Douglas, arguably the greatest upset in boxing history.
James “Buster” Douglas was a colossal underdog in that February 1990 heavyweight bout and was given little chance by experts or fans to even survive, much less win.
Thirty years after Douglas vanquished Tyson in a technical knockout in Japan, singer Bobby Brown is offering himself up as one of the main reasons why Tyson took an “L” that night. In a never-before-heard tale, Brown said he and Tyson stayed up the entire night before the fight partying with a horde of Japanese women.
During a fascinating interview with Tyson, the Vlad TV interviewer quoted Brown as saying: “Mike Tyson and I were in Japan. We basically stayed up all night, partying with 12 Japanese girls.”
Tyson confirmed the party went down on the eve of the fight, but he accused Brown of embellishing about the number of women at the party. “Bobby’s a good multiplier, but yes,” Tyson said, smiling.
Tyson hastened to add that Douglas won the fight fair and square and deserved the victory.
“Buster really trained hard, and I underestimated him, and what happened, happened,” Tyson said. “He fought a great fight and became champion. I’m trying to get him on my podcast, but he don’t wanna come on. I asked for him. He never came down.”
Vlad TV quoted Brown again as imploring Mike Tyson at some point in the night with the women to get some sleep before his fight.
“I kept telling Mike you need to go to sleep. Get some sleep for the fight tomorrow,” the interviewer quoted Brown.
Tyson laughed hard at the recollection. “Why? So he could have all the girls. Right? I (need to get) some sleep so he could have them all.”
The interviewer quoted Tyson’s response to the request that he go to bed, saying, “You told Bobby, ‘Listen, I’m no amateur; I know what I’m doing.’”
Tyson confirmed he made the statement. “Yeah, I did talk that slick s—,” he said, chuckling.
What transpired the next day is tantamount to a Shakespearean tragedy. The seemingly invincible Tyson was knocked out by Douglas in a shocking upset that reverberated around the world. As he laid on the canvas with his left eye swollen shut, little could Tyson have fathomed that his life and career would never be the same after that day.
Flip the page to view the interview in full.
