The Moment Mike Tyson’s Devastating Punch Forced an Opponent to Surrender Mid-Bout
Mike Tyson had one of the most bizarre fights of his career against Polish heavyweight Andrew Golota in 2000.
Before the bout, ‘Iron Mike’ had won all three of his comeback fights after returning from a 15-month ban for biting Evander Holyfield’s ear.
He defeated Francois Botha, Julius Francis and Lou Savarese, although his fight against Orlin Norris was ruled a no contest after the Texas-born fighter was left unable to continue after an injury.
In October 2000, Tyson would travel to The Palace, Michigan to take on Golota, who had a professional record of 36-4 going into the fight.
‘Iron Mike’ dominated the opening exchanges, and knocked Golota down with his trademark right hook during the first round.
The Polish fighter got back to his feet and returned to his corner, but could be heard shouting: “Stop the fight!”
The fight, however, continued through a second round, which Golota managed to complete. However, the third round never began – as the former Olympic bronze medalist refused to continue.
There were ugly scenes as Golota left the arena, with fans angrily pelting various items towards him.
His trainer, Al Certo, later apologised for calling his fighter a ‘quitter’ – he even tried to push in Golota’s mouthpiece in an attempt to convince him to continue.
He said in a statement: “I made several comments criticising my fighter, Andrew Golota, for his decision to not answer the bell for round three.
“At the time of the stoppage, I was unaware of how injured my fighter was.”
It had emerged that Golota had suffered a number of serious injuries during the fight – namely a concussion, a fractured left cheekbone and a herniated disc.
The Pole did return to professional boxing, but took an extended break from the sport after the Tyson fight and didn’t step back into the ring until August 2003 – nearly three years later.
Meanwhile, Tyson tested positive for marijuana and, as a result, his victory over Golota was overturned to a no-contest.
