On Tuesday night, professional boxing champion Mike Tyson was enjoying an evening on the town with friends at an intimate rooftop comedy show in Hollywood when chaos ensued.
A patron at the event approached Tyson during the show apparently requesting a fight with “Iron Mike.” On occasion, there are stories of normal, everyday people wanting to challenge boxers, which is hardly a good idea considering the hands of a professional boxer can be considered a lethal weapon in the court of law.
As the patron continued to pester Tyson about an impromptu duel, sources say the host of the show asked the man to calm down and return to his seat — and that’s when things escalated.
The man did not take well to the idea of being told what to do and not only threatened to shoot the host, but proceeded to pull out a gun and cock it — naturally causing panic in the venue. After seeing the reaction that he caused, the man seemingly was overwhelmed with instant regret and after putting the weapon away, approached Tyson for a second time to offer his apologies and to ask that Tyson did not call the police.
What happened next may be even more shocking.
Tyson calmly listens to the man, then embraces the unstable patron and then the unnamed man simply left without further incident.
Sources say that LAPD was not notified of the incident.
Many would say that Tyson has a reputation for being tough as nails both on-screen as seen in The Hangover when Tyson forced a group of bachelors to hand-deliver his live, stolen pet tiger, and in real-life when Tyson famously bit off a portion of boxing great Evander Holyfield’s ear during a live match in 1997.
While Tyson may show his opponents no mercy, last night shows that a little compassion goes a long way.