5th March, 2012
Mike Tyson today thanks British boxing fans for saving his life.
The former undisputed world heavyweight champion insists if it had not been for his sell-out UK talk shows, he “would have starved to death”.
Tyson returns to Britain next month for another bout of soul-baring as he continues to turn his life around.
The convicted rapist was declared bankrupt in 2003, despite earning more than £185million during his boxing career.
In an exclusive SunSport interview, he admits: “Three years ago, I was homeless. I needed to keep the wolves from my door and the fans in Britain gave me that.
“I am so grateful. My most loyal fan base is in Britain. If I had depended on love in the States, I would have starved to death.”
Tyson, who has also served time for drug offences and assaulting two motorists, is now carving out a Hollywood movie career after appearing in The Hangover films.
He added: “The Hangover has given me a comeback in America but, in Britain, they loved me for all my flaws before the movies came out.
“I have a one-man show coming up in Las Vegas called the Undisputed Truth.
“Film of me going to prison will be screened behind me and I will get naked there in front of people. That’s what I call it, being naked with my clothes on. Just telling the truth.”
That will include talking about the tragic death of his four-year-old daughter Exodus, who died in 2009 after getting tangled in an exercise treadmill.
Tyson, who has been married three times and has eight children by several women, said: “My daughter dying changed my life and I met people who dragged me back from the brink.
“There were ex-Hell’s Angels in my recovery programme who helped me so much.
“I saw people who had millions, I saw people who were homeless and they all had problems. Yet around them were people who would go to an airport at 4am just to talk you out of a bad place.
“They drag people out of the gutter — now my mission is to help people like that.
“I have survived all that I have been through and it’s left me with such passion for life.