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Former heavyweight boxing world champions Mike Tyson, 54, and Roy Jones Jr., 51, battled to a draw in an eight-round exhibition bout this past Saturday. Both fighters looked great and punched hard, with Tyson exhibiting much of his old spark — perhaps because he sparked up a fat joint before the opening bell.
Both Tyson and Jones were drug tested prior to the match, but marijuana was not among the substances with which the boxing commission was concerned.
Considering that Tyson has become a major cannabis entrepreneur who has entertainingly blazed up with Snoop Dogg, weed naturally came up at the post-fight press conference.
When asked if he got high prior to entering the ring for the first time in 15 years, Tyson said, “Absolutely, yes!” Tyson added that he also smoked another joint right after the fight and before coming out to talk to the reporters.
“Listen, I can’t stop smoking,” Tyson said. “I smoked during fights. I just have to smoke, I’m sorry. I’m a smoker. … I smoke every day. I never stopped smoking.”
Elaborating on his passion for pot, Tyson said, “It’s just who I am. It has no effect on me from a negative standpoint. It’s just what I do and how I am and how I’m going to die. There’s no explanation. There’s no beginning, there’s no end.”
When asked if weed numbed the pain of the punches Jones landed, Tyson smiled and said, “No. It just numbs me!”
The exhibition match raised a great deal of money for various charities. Tyson said that’s what got him interested in participating in the first place. “This is better than fighting for championships,” he said. “We’re humanitarians now. We can do something good for the world. We’ve got to do this again.”
Jones expressed similar interest in a rematch. “The body shots definitely took a toll,” he admitted. “It’s something to take the punches that Mike throws. I’m cool with a draw. Maybe we can do it again.”
Considering those blows, maybe for the next showdown, Jones might consider training at the massive cannabis compound known as Tyson Ranch.
