Mike Tyson lost £2.3m for biting Evander Holyfield’s ear… but wife’s amazing idea saw him recoup the money
MIKE TYSON was fined £2.3million for infamously biting Evander Holyfield’s ear – but he found a brilliant way to recoup it back.
Tyson disgracefully sunk his teeth into Holyfield’s ear in their 1997 rematch, a year after losing the first fight in 11 rounds.
The former heavyweight champion was banned from boxing for 15 months and hit with the multimillion dollar fine.
In retirement, the two made up and became friends while Tyson went onto build a cannabis empire.
He sells products like vapes and edibles, with one amazingly shaped on Holyfield’s bitten ear.
And Tyson revealed the idea to sculpt the edible on Holyfield’s chewed off ear came from his wife Lakiha Spicer.
He told Forbes: “My wife is a nut, but she’s brilliant. And she said, ‘Why don’t you use the ear?’
“‘Get out of here,’. “I was a little bitter because the ear got me in a lot of trouble.”
Tyson, 57, joked how he and Holyfield, 61, are still profiting from their “bite fight” almost three decades later.
He said: “You know what’s funny? When I bit Holyfield’s ear, they took $3million from me.
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“I made more than that taking pictures of biting other people’s ears.
“Me and Holyfield are the only people still making money from a fight 30 years ago.”
Tyson is currently training for his controversial comeback fight against YouTuber-turned-boxer Jake Paul on July 20 in Texas.
The bout – set for the 80,000-seat AT&T Stadium in Dallas – has raised eyebrows due to the 30-year age gap.
Tyson will be 58 by the time the fight for the ages comes around and nearly 20 years removed from his last professional contest.
But he is attempting to roll back the clock in training and has been showing off his devastating combination punching online.
And behind the scenes, Tyson is also putting in sacrifices which include giving up sex and smoking weed.
He said: “Six weeks I haven’t gotten high or had sex.”
Mike Tyson's controversial comeback
Mike Tyson is BACK!
Yes, boxing’s youngest heavyweight champ of all time – just 20 when he achieved the feat – is preparing to lace them up again.
He faces YouTuber-turned-boxer Jake Paul on July 20 in Texas.
The controversial clash – set for the 80,000-seat AT&T Stadium in Dallas – has been scrutinised over the 30-year age gap.
Tyson will be 58 by the time the fight for the ages comes around and nearly 20 years removed from his last professional contest.
He was last seen in the ring in November 2020 for an exhibition with fellow legend Roy Jones Jr, which ended a draw after eight rounds.
Paul is meanwhile 9-1 in the ring, losing only to Tommy Fury in 2023, and has won three times since.
His fight with Tyson will also be a landmark first on Netflix, with over 250MILLION subscribers able to watch the bout.
Asked why, he explained: “Discipline. You know discipline, doing what you love to do, what you love to do, doing what you hate to do but doing it like you love it.
“You know, I hate not being able to smoke, I’m doing it like I love it. I hate not not being able to sleep with my wife but I’m doing it like I love it.”
During Tyson’s volatile heyday, he is said to have enjoyed having sex in his locker room only moments before fighting.
That is despite the long-standing belief in boxing that abstinence helps boost testosterone which is why several restrain from sex while training.
And Tyson – who married his third wife in 2009 – once admitted to smoking £33,000 worth of weed a MONTH.
He was last seen in the ring in 2020 for an exhibition drawn over eight rounds with fellow great Roy Jones Jr.
Meanwhile Paul is 9-1 as a boxer who suffered his only defeat to Tyson Fury’s brother Tommy in February 2023.
But he has won three since and vowed to put friendship aside to score the biggest win of his career against Tyson.
Paul, 27, said on DAZN: “Uncle Mike, I love you, you’re looking amazing but there can only be one winner and I’m sorry but I’ve got to end you.”
