How Mike Tyson Lost His Millions?

Despite being 54 years old, boxing legend Mike Tyson has returned for another ride in the ring. After months of build up and a two month delay, he and Roy Jones Jr. went up against each other in an exhibition bout. Back in the day, Tyson was known as one of the most feared heavyweights in history, dominating the sport over the late 1980s, but besides all his success, I'm sure you can also remember that time he lost $400 million dollars of his fortune. I know, you're probably wondering, how can someone lose that much money? Well today, I'm here to tell you. We're going to look at all of the jaw dropping purchases and events that made Mr. Tyson go broke. I mean Mike is doing fine these days, but I don't think you ever fully come back from losing that type of money. It's said that the former heavyweight champ lost hundreds of millions thanks to reckless spending on mansions he never lived in, cars he never drove, exotic animals, expensive jewelry, and showing off to the extreme. Like if he wanted to impress you, he'd take you to a luxury car dealership and buy all the whips in the showroom. And yes, he's done that. On top of all his frivolous spending on himself and his friends, he reportedly got ripped off by Don King and Robin Givens. Mike Tyson had countless victories in his professional boxing career, and was even the youngest heavyweight champion in history with brutal punching power that carried him to a 37-0 record up until his first defeat in 1990. Tyson remained a star despite years spent in prison, and even hitting infamous lows such as biting Evander Holyfield's ear in the 1997 rematch, and quitting against Kevin McBride during his final pro bout. Although Mike retired from boxing back in 2006, we can see he's not quite done with the sport yet. In recent years, Mr. Tyson has revamped his image into a kinder, gentler version of himself, while appearing in films, hosting a podcast, and more. What's going on guys and girls, it's Kara and today on Famous Entertainment we're trying something new. I'm going to tell you all about how boxing legend Mike Tyson lost his millions. He declared bankruptcy in 2003 despite having received over 300 million dollars during his career, and at the time it was reported he was in a whopping 23 million dollars in debt. These days, Mike's net worth is estimated around 3 million, but if he didn't lose it all back then, it's thought his number would be closer to 400 million or more right now. If you guys liked this video, be sure to let me know and I'll bring you more of this series. Maybe we can cover how celebrities like Nicolas Cage or Johnny Depp blew their fortunes too. As usual, don't forget to like, subscribe, and follow me on Instagram to chat. Now let's get into this video. As I mentioned, Tyson lost about 400 million dollars with some of the most reckless spending you could imagine. He recently said himself, I didn't think I'd make it through my 30s. My 30s were scary, weren't they? The former boxer said to nervous laughter from the audience he was speaking with. While he said he was never crazy with money, he admitted he went crazy with it, squandering his fortune on everything from mansions to prostitutes and partying. Mike grew up in the ghetto and had a fractured home life, frequently running into trouble with police over petty criminal activity. By age 13, he had been arrested over 30 times. While his bad behaviour landed him in a reform school for boys, he met counsellor Bob Stewart, an amateur boxing champ himself, who helped Tyson find his passion for boxing. So there was a silver lining. Mike overcame adversity, stayed out of trouble, and by the time he was 20, he had become the youngest heavyweight boxing champion ever in 1986. While Mike was winning in the ring and winning at life, it came to a halt for a few years after his loss to Buster Douglas in 1990. Less than a year after losing his world title, he was sent to prison following a sexual assault conviction, for which he still denies charges to this day. It's no doubt the time in jail affected Mike's ability to earn money and his fortune, so that's one reason he lost out on millions. But you might be surprised to know his bank account didn't actually get bad until AFTER getting out of jail. Tyson spent 4 years in prison before returning to the ring in 1995, and he actually had a reported 300 million dollars still in the bank to smoothen his transition back into normal life. I think that's enough to smooth anything. Tyson regained his titles once again in his third fight back. In November 1996, Tyson wasn't able to hold onto the belt though, and lost to Evander Holyfield. Another reason Tyson lost out on boxing money was due to disqualifications and fines. For example, during his rematch with Holyfield, Tyson infamously bit off a part of his opponents ear during the third round, losing to disqualification, also missing out on a possible big boxing payoff. Tyson left 3 million dollars poorer from his scheduled 30 million dollar payday from the fight. The Nevada State Boxing Commission withheld that amount for the incident, and Mike was further penalized 3 million dollars by the Nevada State Athletic Commission. Tyson made his ring return in 1999 and knocked out Francois Braga. However, poor Mike found himself going back to prison again when he assaulted two motorists after a traffic incident. This also resulted in a $5,000 fine. While all of that counts, let's jump into the more exciting stuff. Like I said, Mike started famously losing his cash after being released from prison that first time in the 90s. The man had crazy spending habits. As high as the heights he reached in his boxing career, he chose to waste his money on lavish and luxurious things. Just for a list of some of Mike's spending habits in the first 33 months post prison release, he spent 4.5 million dollars on cars and motorcycles, 100k per month on jewelry and clothes, $240,000 per month just for everyday money he could flex around, $300,000 on lawn care and garden maintenance alone, $230,000 on cell phones, pagers and phone bills. And that's far from all. Mike also spent 400k on pigeons and other exotic pets, namely big cats like Siberian tigers. He further had to spend on maintenance for them, and 125k per year for an animal trainer. Tyson is said to have purchased 111 cars in his lifetime. At his peak, he owned a limited edition Bentley Continental SC that set him back 500k, and was one of only 73 ever made. He owned several Ferraris, Lamborghinis, a Range Rover, a Mercedes Benz 500, and a 1995 Rolls Royce which he later totaled in an accident, abandoning it at a Topps auto garage, letting them keep it. Mike didn't only blow his fortune on himself, he notoriously spent a huge chunk of it on his family, friends, and even randos. Out of the alleged 4.5 million Tyson spent on his whips, it's said he bought about 19 vehicles for his friends. He would show off by purchasing the entire showroom of a luxury car dealership if he was feeling generous, and he would get phone calls from the police after members of his entourage were pulled over driving cars he forgot he even had. People Mike didn't even know were apparently living in his mansions and helping themselves to his stuff. He would even buy strangers Rolex watches if they complimented him in the street. In his autobiography, Mike told the story of how he once found tens of thousands of dollars he had stashed in his laundry basket. After that episode, all of his crew wanted to do his laundry for him. One of the most ridiculous purchases Mike ever made for someone else was a Christmas gift to his first wife, Robin Givens, buying her a golden bathtub for 2 million dollars. During this time period, Mike also went OFF buying mansions. We previously did a Mike Tyson house tour on this channel if you want to check out the homes in more detail, but I'll give you a rundown. He got a 52 room mega mansion in Connecticut complete with an on-site casino and nightclub, which was eventually owned by rapper 50 Cent in later years. The 50,000 square foot property also had 25 bathrooms, an indoor pool and spa, an indoor basketball court, multiple games rooms, a recording studio, and much more. Another big property Mike threw down millions on was the residence in Maryland he bought with his ex-wife Monica Turner in 1995. They lived here through the early 2000s until their divorce, and this mansion features 7 bedrooms, a large gym, games room, swimming pool, sports court, and more. It also overlooks a country club and golf course where they host several US Open tournaments. In later years, we know Mike has moved on to luxe mansions in Las Vegas where he currently lives, but back in the day, he also bought up THIS crazy Ohio party mansion. This palatial residence has since been turned into a church, but back in its prime, Mike had it decked out with chandeliers and tiger cages. He lived here since the 80s, so he bought it before going to prison, according to reports. He was forced to sell the castle-like property due to his financial issues, and while it was abandoned for some years, these days, it's been refurbished. Tyson's name is still on the gate as far as we can see too, but before this 5.8 acre property became a place of worship, it was quite the lavish home. It spanned 19,500 square feet with 5 beds and 7 baths, as well as an additional 6,000 square feet in the basement. Back in his wild partying days, Mike's Ohio mansion included lavishly decorated rooms with crystal chandeliers throughout, a full kitchen and a mini kitchen, and a pool bigger than some houses. On the floors, some rooms had zebra print carpets while others had red. The ornate home was over the top, the rooms were massive, and there were gold accents all over the place. This is also where Mike kept tiger cages for his 3 bengals that cost him 70k each, and an indoor pool with a sundae bar and a jacuzzi. Sadly, with financial issues considered, Mike only got a mere 1 million for the home apparently. Another big reason Mike lost a lot of his fortune was from his drama with promoter Don King. This is a whole story in itself, but to sum it up, these guys were once the most powerful tag team in boxing, making hundreds of millions of dollars together. King promoted some of the biggest boxers in fights throughout his career, and like anyone in the biz, once Tyson was a star, King wanted a piece. Despite their success, the pair had a nasty breakup that resulted in Tyson suing King for 100 million, claiming he cheated him out of a ton of money. And while you may think Don would be the one losing, it seems Tyson lost millions in court over all of this. The two attempted a reconciliation years later around 2003 but it didn't go well, and ended with a drug fueled Tyson kicking Don in the head. I'm pretty sure that's another assault charge right there. Anyways, you get the picture. Finally, another big way that Tyson lost millions was definitely from his previous marriages and children. His first wife, actress Robin Givens was there through the heat of his crazy lifestyle, and they were married in early 1988. Around this time, Tyson's boxing career was facing plenty of struggles, and as his game was falling apart, so was his marriage with Robin. It hadn't even been a year, but allegations of spousal abuse began to surface in the media, and Robin and her mother demanded access to Mike's money for a down payment on a 3 million dollar home. Tyson's behaviour during this time became increasingly violent and erratic, and Robin announced near the end of the year she was filing for divorce. Tyson countersued for a divorce and an annulment, beginning an ugly month long court process. Mike was married to his second wife Monica Turner for 6 years, but she filed for divorce on the grounds of adultery in 2003. This was the same year he finally filed for bankruptcy, and yes, Monica kept their Maryland mansion. It's no doubt that Mike lost a ton of money in court for his divorces and spousal support. Not to mention, Tyson is the father of 7 known children with multiple women, some of whom continue to remain anonymous to the media. Alright, I think that about wraps it up for how Mike Tyson lost his millions. Despite losing an estimated 400 million dollars of his career earnings and crashing on a friend's couches after going bankrupt, it seems Iron Mike has recovered his finances and living a better life. He has a gorgeous home in Henderson, Nevada, getting back on his feet through a number of ventures, from minor roles in TV and film, most notably with the Hangover series, and becoming a New York Times bestselling author with his book The Undisputed Truth. Nowadays, Tyson also apparently makes about half a million a month through his cannabis business, so if that's true, hats off to him. He changed his ways, cleaned up his image, and is now successful as they come. The boxing legend even said he would donate his earnings from his most recent boxing exhibition to help those in need during the worldwide pandemic. After hearing all the ways Mike Tyson blew hundreds of millions of dollars, what did you guys think? What were his craziest purchases? I gotta say spending hundreds of thousands on pigeons and exotic animals is wild, but if I was super rich, I would want a ton of farm animals too. Be sure to let me know in the comments. If you'd like to see more of this series, tell me who we should feature next. Don't forget to follow me on Instagram, and I'll see you all in the next video. Bye!