Looking Back on His $3 Million Mistake, Mike Tyson Reveals How the Referee’s Act Impacted His Choice to Bite Evander Holyfield’s Ear

More than a quarter-century has passed, but the indelible memory of the infamous rematch between Mike Tyson and Evander Holyfield still echoes in the minds of boxing enthusiasts. The heavyweight clash on June 28, 1997, in Las Vegas, initially dubbed ‘The Sound and the Fury,’ took an unexpected turn. Today it’s known as the ‘Bite Fight’.

Tyson shockingly bit off Holyfield’s ear before a bewildered audience. The incident, forever etched in boxing history, led to the fight becoming more popularly known as ‘The Bite Fight.’ Back then, spectators were left in disbelief. However, 26 years later Tyson has talked about the reason behind him biting Holyfield’s years.

Mike Tyson blames it on the referee

From the onset of the match, Holyfield asserted dominance, securing victory in the initial three rounds. The turning point came at 2:19 of the first round when he delivered an overhand right punch, leaving Tyson dazed. Just 32 seconds into the second round, an unintentional clash of heads occurred, giving Tyson a significant cut above his right eye. This cut played a crucial role in Tyson’s subsequent attack on Holyfield. He had previously expressed grievances about Holyfield’s head-butting in their initial bout.

Before the third round commenced, Tyson emerged without his mouthpiece. Referee Mills Lane, sensing trouble, instructed Tyson to return to his corner and rectify the omission. Despite this warning, with 40 seconds left in the third round, Tyson, entangled in a clinch with Holyfield, shockingly bit off a one-inch piece of Holyfield’s right ear. Well, this made the environment chaotic, and Tyson was instantly disqualified. Later, he was fined $3 million by the Nevada commission and even had his license revoked.

Recently, in the SHOWTIME Sports farewell video with Jim Gray, he apologized again for his behavior all these years ago. He even revealed the reason behind his frustration. He said, “I was just- fighting is fighting. But I was just concerned because the referee didn’t warn him once and that’s why I was just upset about that.” Not only this, a few years ago in an interview with Jim Gray himself, he gave some other reason for his behavior, and it deviated a bit from what he’s saying now.

Tyson’s old reason for his actions in ‘The Bite Fight’

Jim Gray, the accomplished sports broadcaster, unveiled his book titled ‘Talking to GOATs’ in 2020. Additionally, in a Fox News special titled ‘Talking to GOATs with Jim Gray’, Gray revisited one of the most memorable incidents in sports history. During a sit-down interview with Mike Tyson, Gray delved into the intriguing details of the notorious moment.

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In this interview, Mike Tyson explained, “No, I bit him because I wanted to kill him. I was really mad about my head being bumped and everything. I really lost consciousness of the whole fight. It took me out of my fight plan and everything.” What he said here seems to be more brutally honest than his recent reason.

Well, it’s quite difficult to say which one is more accurate since both are given by the man himself. So, maybe both are truthful, they’re just extensions of each other. What are your thoughts about this? Tell us in the comments section.

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