Former unified heavyweight world champion Mike Tyson, 54, has stepped into the ring for the first time in 15 years in an exhibition match. He played Roy Jones Jr. (51 = both in America) who retired two years ago after conquering all four medium to heavy classes, and was overwhelmed from start to finish with a heavy hit to the body. As it was not an official match, there was no official score from the judges, and the benchmark score for the three former champions selected by the WBC was a draw.

Tyson dropped to the best weight of 22.4 pounds (about 99.97) in his active days. It was a sign of enthusiasm for this battle. When the gong sounded early in the game, he landed a left jab at speed and attacked Jones. Jones fights to avoid Tyson’s blow with clinch and footwork. Tyson was focused on the body and always fought for the advantage.

After the game, Tyson looked tired and said, “Two minutes was up to three minutes. It’s okay to tie. Now I’m happy I fought eight times.” On the other hand, Jones said, “Tyson’s body really worked. It was amazing. I couldn’t even do the outboxing that I tried to do.”

They are both famous champions who won the heavy class, but Tyson is a natural heavy class compared to Jones, who was originally middle class (72.57 kg). Many people expected that the difference in the size and power of the body would determine the result. The bet rate just before was 15 to 8 and Tyson had an advantage. On the other hand, Jones, who was active until two years ago, did not allow Tyson to make a decisive blow to the end due to his “royal war.”

Initially, the two wanted a regular 10th round, but for safety reasons the California Athletic Commission (CSAC) decided to use a 2-minute show 8th round in a round, and the gloves used were 12 ounces, which is larger than normal 10 ounces. Specified. However, the dream showdown between the champions in boxing history is said to be “the biggest match of the year,” and Tyson’s minimum wage was reported to be over one billion yen in Japanese yen. Although it was a neglected event, PPV (Pay Per View) sales were strong, and the final rewards for the two are sure to exceed 5 billion yen.

It has been 15 years since I retired. As expected, I couldn’t see the brilliant KO of yesteryear, but Tyson said, “I want to do it again. I went to the game to cheer people on. I want you to see how hard you can do it this year.” Even when times changed, the overwhelming presence of the legendary iron man was still alive.