Mike Tyson talks about his career and says he feared no one

'Iron Mike' Tyson talks to mid-day about his near-invincible career on Day One of his maiden trip to India for the Kumite 1 mixed martial arts league

Mike Tyson, once the youngest heavyweight champion of the world at 20, was known for his short, sharp punches and even shorter stays in the ring given he knocked out most opponents rather quickly.

At 52, he still keeps it short and straight, but in this case,, it's his dialogues because, "these hands have stopped punchin' a long time ago, man," he tells mid-day, as he raises his fists that still look intimidating despite all those years of power-punching.

'MMA is exciting'
Tyson is on his maiden India trip to promote the Kumite 1 League, a mixed martial arts (MMA) event at the NSCI Dome in Worli today. "I love MMA… it's so exciting," he says, before quickly adding, "But I don't think I was ever cut out for it.

MMA was around even when I was boxing at the top. It was, may be, more popular in Thailand or Japan or other parts of the world. And I have huge respect for MMA fighters because they have to be so alert and so sharp because there's a punch thrown in and then you have to constantly watch out for that kick or a sudden move from your opponent. But I always felt that I was a boxing guy because that's the only thing I did since I was 12."

There's another reason why Tyson feels he would never excel at MMA. "I don't think my kicks would ever get any high," he says with a laugh. A controversial lifestyle turned Tyson into one of the world's most recognisable faces, be it his rape sentence in 1992, followed by a few run-ins with the law and finally his bankruptcy, but there was something about Tyson, the boxer, that made him a class apart. He explains just what that was: "In the ring, I feared no one. The opponent's height didn't matter, nothing mattered. In boxing, all you need is a big heart and a strong spirit. I had that, I was rough, and I did it. That's the reason I want to visit the slums in Mumbai because I'm a slumdog and that's where the rough kids are and I like that. I ain't here to party."

'Holyfield was the toughest'
In his own words, Tyson "won a lot and even lost a lot" against some of the world's best fighters, including Larry Holmes, James 'Buster' Douglas and Lennox Lewis among others, but ask him about his toughest opponent and there's just one big name on his lips. "Evander Holyfield... he was tough... he was good," says Tyson, who infamously bit off and spat out a piece of Holyfield's ear in a 1997 WBA title rematch, for which he was disqualified.

Of the current lot, Tyson has another clear favourite. "Errol Spence Jr is doing good. He has some big punches," says Tyson about the reigning IBF welterweight champion, who has a 24-0 win-loss record of which 21 are through knockouts.

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