The year was 1988, nearly three decades ago, at the Atlantic City Convention Hall. Mike Tyson, at just 21 years of age, held belts from the three major sanctioning organizations at the time while Michael Spinks, nearly 10 years older than Tyson, was considered the lineal champion and also held the belt from Ring Magazine. The fight was a long time in the making, with negotiations between both fighters falling apart numerous times after being unable to agree in compensation. As the story goes, Tyson was so fed up with people asking him about Spinks that he instructed his management team to make a deal.
Tyson answered the opening bell with an intensity and ferociousness as only he could, and Spinks appeared overwhelmed from the get go. Spinks’ manager, Butch Lewis, may have had something to do with added level of viciousness Tyson brought with him to the ring that night, as he apparently was hassling Tyson about a ‘bump’ he could see on Tyson’s glove. Whether that was the reason for Tyson’s fury is actually irrelevant, as Spinks never had a chance.
Some will say that was one of, if not the biggest knockout of Tyson’s career. What do you think?
