Here's How Much Mike Tyson Is Really Worth
The following article includes mentions of sexual assault, domestic abuse, and substance abuse.
When it comes to the life of Mike Tyson, there's plenty to unpack. For those not in the know, Tyson was a boxing prodigy, being discovered as a kid. He eventually became the youngest heavyweight champion in the world at 20 years old, a record that still stands in 2022. Plus, his overall fighting record is 50 wins, 6 losses, with 44 knockouts. But it's just not the number of knockouts that's impressive, it's the way he did it, putting many of his opponents on the canvas in the very first round. It was that sheer dominance that made the now-retired fighter one of the biggest celebrities in the world, not to mention incredibly rich.
As of 2022, Tyson's net worth is $10 million, per Celebrity Net Worth, which is a relatively small number compared to all the money he's made over the years. And even though his financial issues have been well-documented, there's still plenty of information that a lot of folks probably still don't know about, so we did some digging. What did we find? That it's possible that Tyson is worth way more than $10 million. Check it out for yourself.
Mike Tyson faced challenges from early on
Mike Tyson had to deal with challenges from very early on, being that his biological father Purcell Tyson left when he was just two years old, as Distractify shows. His mother, Lorna Mae Smith, then met a man named Jimmy Kirkpatrick Jr., who was in and out of the boxer's life after the romance ended. So, for the most part, Tyson grew up in a single-parent household and got into a bunch of legal trouble as a kid. "[My mother was] always going to police stations to get my a** out of [jail] ... I been arrested 40 times before I was 12," he explained on Logan Paul's "Impaulsive" podcast in 2020. And sadly, the former heavyweight champ lost his mother when he was just 16 years old, per Bleacher Report, while his sister Denise Anderson died of a heart attack in Queens, New York, in 1990.
In fact, Tyson got into so much trouble as a young person; he was sent to Tryon School for Boys in Upstate New York, a place for troubled youth. But his stint wound up being a blessing because that's where he met counselor and former fighter Bobby Stewart, who taught kids how to box. In time, Stewart introduced Tyson to late, legendary boxing trainer Cus D'Amato, who not only worked with Tyson but adopted him. "He just met me. I'm a little kid. He says, 'You're gonna be the world champ,'" a teary-eyed Tyson explained to ESPN. What a vision D'Amato had, right?
His first fight didn't come with a purse
It seems that some get into professional sports and entertainment for the applause, while others for the money. But presumably, there are a good number of folks, like Mike Tyson, who love the craft and competition of it all. Tyson once tweeted about his early career and said that money wasn't his motivator, but that changed eventually.
"For my first fight, I only made $500 and that's only because someone took it out their pocket and gave it [to] me," he wrote on December 6, 2021. "I never fought for the money. But when I did start fighting for the money, I got lost."
One of the trainers who worked with Tyson when he first slipped on boxing gloves was a man named Teddy Atlas, who talked about the New York native's first bout. "By this time, he was probably up to 195 pounds, 200 pounds ... He was 13 years old, I think," said Atlas in 2020 on his podcast "The Fight." "How am I gonna find [someone his age who's willing to fight him]?" Atlas said that a 17-year-old eventually agreed to it, and Tyson knocked him straight through the ropes. "His mouthpiece goes flying about probably 10 yards ... and winds up in somebody's lap," said Atlas about Tyson's opponent. Who knows? Maybe the spectator who caught that mouthpiece could've sold it for millions, assuming it was kept and the buyer didn't mind a little blood and saliva.
Mike Tyson earned $35 million more than once
From $500 (the amount Mike Tyson received after his first fight), to $35 million, the latter was the biggest payday of his professional boxing career. He talked about making that amount on his "Hotboxin' with Mike Tyson" podcast in 2021. Plus, right after giving that number, he said, " I make that now and I'm 55," which means Tyson is still raking it in during retirement, which not all retired athletes can say. And as for that $35 million payday, it's not like Tyson only made it once, as Sportskeeda shows — he made it three times. Once, was against Frank Bruno in 1996, another time was when he faced Bruce Sheldon that same year, and in 2002 he earned that same amount fighting Lennox Lewis.
Elsewhere in that podcast episode, Tyson said he knew from early on that people would pay big money to see him fight, but his initial challenge was to get himself in front of the right people at the most opportune time. "I just love fighting. I would fight for nothing. I didn't care. I wanted the world to see me, 'cause once they see me I know they're going to start paying for me," he explained.
He was a major pitch-person
Considering he was often on television and magazine covers, companies and brands probably didn't have to think all that long about hiring Mike Tyson as a pitch person. During his career, the soft-spoken boxer endorsed companies like Kodak and Nintendo. He also did ads for Pepsi and was paid over $10 million for working with the soda juggernauts, per The U.S. Sun. On top of that, he was hired by the door company Curtron before ever achieving big-time fame. "My first commercial endorsement ever, in Catskill, 1985," Tyson captioned a photo of himself in the ad. "I wasn't even wearing my black shoes back then."
But many of Tyson's endorsements came crashing down after he and his ex-wife, actor Robin Givens, sat down for an interview with Barbara Walters in 1988. During that much-talked-about conversation, the former '80s TV star claimed that Tyson had an "extremely volatile temper" and said he's been physically abusive. "He shakes, he pushes, he swings ... and just recently I've become afraid," stated Givens, who co-starred in one of the Pepsi commercials with her ex. Black Enterprise says that Pepsi canceled its $10 million deal with Tyson after that interview and he also lost his deal with Nintendo.
If you or someone you know is dealing with domestic abuse, you can call the National Domestic Violence Hotline at 1−800−799−7233. You can also find more information, resources, and support at their website.
Mike Tyson had mansions in several states
After beating opponents to a bloody pulp, Mike Tyson laid his head down in some massive homes, owning mansions in Connecticut, Maryland, Nevada, and Ohio. And get this: His Farmington, Connecticut home had 56 rooms, including 21 bedrooms. Rapper 50 Cent bought the mammoth structure in 2003 for $4.1 million, as CBS News reported, before selling it himself in 2019 for $2.9 million. Then there's Tyson's former Ohio mansion that looked like a mini-castle. He sold it to former businessman Paul Monea in 1999 for $1.3 million, according to Cleveland.com. Eventually, the house was donated to the Ohio church Living Word Sanctuary and converted into a worship facility.
Tyson's Bethesda, Maryland mansion was shared with his ex-wife Monica Turner. He bought the seven-bedroom home in 1995. Then in 2008, he purchased a 5,740-square-foot mansion in Henderson, Nevada for $1.75 million, as Forbes specifies. He bought an even bigger house down the street in 2016 for $2.5 million and sold his first Las Vegas home for $1.475 million. Undoubtedly, the boxing legend enjoys dabbling in real estate. So much so, he encouraged his son Amir to get into it instead of boxing.
"He wants to do this so bad," Tyson said about his son's boxing interest on his podcast "Hotboxin With Mike Tyson." "He wants to fight Logan Paul and those guys. I said, 'Man, just get a job. You're getting your real estate license.'"
He bought and gave away luxury cars
With all those fancy digs that Mike Tyson bought during and after his boxing heyday, he sure didn't pull up to one of them in a Ford Taurus. Not that there's anything wrong with a Taurus, mind you, but Tyson opted for far fancier vehicles. In fact, he had so many luxury cars at one point, he gave a reported 17 away to various people. "That was just my ex-life. That's just how I lived my life," he said in a 2011 interview with Graham Bensinger. "That's my addictive personality ... that's my ego ... from me being poor and never having anything."
Some of Tyson's cars included a couple of Rolls Royces, a $500,000 Lamborghini, a Jaguar XJ220, and a Bentley Continental SC that he paid $300,000 for, according to Hotcars.com. As he recalled on the "Joe Rogan Experience" in 2019, he even gave away a Rolls Royce after his ex-wife Robin Givens allegedly ran into someone. "There was a guy with a broken arm, and I said, you know, sir, why don't you just take the car, you deserve it," Tyson remembered. If that's not all, the celeb also purchased seven Bentleys at one point.
In his older years, it seems that Tyson doesn't buy as many vehicles, but he's learned that material possessions can disappear faster than seconds in a round of boxing. "From the Rolls Royce to the gutter is just one step," Tyson captioned a 2021 Instagram photo of himself standing next to a Rolls-Royce.
Mike Tyson lost money through two divorces
As of 2022, Mike Tyson tied the knot three times, and two of those knots eventually came undone. His first wife was Robin Givens, who grew to fame starring in the '80s sitcom "Head of the Class." They were married for eight months in 1988, with Givens accusing Tyson of spousal abuse. After their split, things got pretty nasty between them in the press. It was so bad that Givens filed a $125 million defamation suit after Tyson called her and her mother Ruth Roper, "The slime of the slime." Givens withdrew her suit later on. What's more, it was rumored the former pro fighter gave his ex $10 million in the settlement, something she denied. But either way, Tyson still shelled out money for legal representation, which obviously took away from his earnings.
His second divorce was to pediatrician Monica Turner, who he was married to from 1997 to 2003. The Washington Post shows that she accused him of cheating and spending too much money. In the end, Turner walked away with $6.5 million in the settlement and Tyson's Connecticut mansion. She also got their Bethesda, Maryland mansion, per the Washingtonian. In 2009 Tyson married Lakiha Spicer, and they're still together as of 2022.
"That's why I got married three times, 'cause I can't live without a wife," Tyson admitted on rapper T.I.'s podcast "ExpediTIously" in 2020. "I need somebody to listen to ... I can't think on my own. I need somebody to listen to."
If you or someone you know is dealing with domestic abuse, you can call the National Domestic Violence Hotline at 1−800−799−7233. You can also find more information, resources, and support at their website.
His finances were halted during prison
In the 1990s, there were at least two things that heavily affected Mike Tyson's finances: Being sentenced to prison and being suspended from boxing. Tyson was sentenced to six years after being convicted of raping former beauty contestant Desiree Washington in 1991, which he's always denied. And despite Tyson missing out on large sums of money then, he still wasn't eager to re-enter society after being locked up for three years.
"I didn't want to leave [prison] when I left because I was secure, I was safe," he said on "Hotboxin' with Mike Tyson" in 2020. "I really didn't know what I was doing when I came out of prison." Regardless, Tyson was soon back in the ring with his first match being against Peter McNeeley, who he beat through disqualification after knocking him down twice.
Tyson then had a few more fights before losing to Evander Holyfield on November 9, 1996, and again in their June 28, 1997 rematch. Their second bout, however, is probably way more memorable since Tyson bit Holyfield's ear twice in the third round. "I bit him because I wanted to kill him," said Tyson on Fox News. "I was really mad about my head being bumped and everything." Tyson was disqualified from the match, suspended for 18 months, and fined $3 million.
If you or anyone you know has been a victim of sexual assault, help is available. Visit the Rape, Abuse & Incest National Network website or contact RAINN's National Helpline at 1-800-656-HOPE (4673).
Mike Tyson filed for Chapter 11
Tyson was in debt a whopping $23 million when he filed for bankruptcy in 2003, despite making a reported $300 million during his boxing career. So, how did he blow all of that money? "Jewelry, prostitutes, mansions and cars," according to what he said in 2017 at the SALT Conference in Las Vegas, per CNN. Plus, Tyson's lawyer at the time, Debra Grassgreen, said the former heavyweight was misled by those who handled his money, and filing for Chapter 11 was a way for him to start controlling his finances.
And besides blowing money on his vices, ESPN shows that Tyson was in debt to the Internal Revenue Service, his ex-wife Monica Turner and creditors. He sued famed promoter Don King for $100 million in 1998 as well, claiming King scammed him out of money while he was in prison. But the two settled in 2004, with King agreeing to pay Tyson $14 million. But it's not like the former Brooklyn resident could pocket that money because he had plenty of debts to settle.
"I had a lot of money back then," said Tyson during a 2021 interview with VladTV. "I had more money than anybody in our community had ... I never had money before. That's what you do when you never had money. You buy a lot of goodies for you and your friends that never had money."
He doesn't equate money with happiness
It's an old saying: "The grass is always greener on the other side." Sometimes, however, the green isn't actually made of grass, it's made of money and a lot of folks probably think they'll be happier if they had more of it. Mike Tyson, however, said he knows from experience that isn't the case, which he talked about while being interviewed by Valuetainment. "If you think a lot of money is going to make you happy, you never had a lot of money before," he explained.
Tyson also spoke about not equating money with happiness in 2020 while talking to rapper Waka Flocka on his "Hotboxin with Mike Tyson" podcast. Part of Tyson's problem in the past, according to his explanation, is that he had very low self-esteem and didn't think he was worthy of being rich. "I had a lot of money before and I know that was when I was at the lowest point of my life," he remembered. "I felt I didn't deserve it. I said, 'I come from f*******g filth. My family, we lived in condemned buildings. Why do I have money?'"
Mike Tyson went from the ring to the stage
There are plenty of athletes who jumped from their respective sport to acting like Shaquille O'Neal, Terry Bradshaw, Rick Fox, and Dwayne Johnson. The acting bug also nibbled on Mike Tyson, which was seen when he appeared in "The Hangover" in 2009. As of now, there are no reports that indicate he did it for free, so his bank account only benefited from being in the classic comedy flick. But Tyson began acting way before swapping lines with Bradley Cooper, as his first acting gig was in 1987 on the sitcom "Webster," shown by IMDb. He was also in an episode of "Who's the Boss?" as well as the films "When Will I Be Loved" and "Rocky Balboa."
Tyson had success on stage to boot, being in a one-man show called "Mike Tyson: Undisputed Truth," alongside Spike Lee. The show opened on Broadway on August 2, 2012, and wrapped up on August 12 of that year. It's not known how much Tyson made for appearing in the show, but for what it's worth, it grossed $1,204,618, according to Playbill. The boxer-turned-actor also earned money when the show was filmed and sold to HBO, although, again, it's not clear how much he pulled in. And Broadway wasn't Tyson's last acting stop since he appeared in several projects afterward, including HBO's "Entourage," and the Tyler Perry film, "A Madea Family Funeral."
He got into the weed biz
Reinventing yourself is a common thing because often the long arms of life will push you to make a change. It's something that Mike Tyson seems to be aware of because after age hindered his ability to fight at the same level, he made a lot of money in the business realm. In 2016, Tyson started the cannabis company Tyson Holistic Holdings with businessman Rob Hickman. Fox Sports said it earned $1 million per month in 2020. Plus, Tyson owns a 420-acre ranch close to Desert Hot Springs, California, set aside for a cannabis resort. And if that's not enough entrepreneurship for one person, he launched a cannabis brand, Tyson 2.0, that sells various products.
"It sells out at all the biggest dispensaries in the world," said Tyson about his weed strain while speaking to Fox 11 Los Angeles in 2021. He's also an avid smoker, which he talked about with KSNV News 3 Las Vegas in 2019. "[I've been] using it all my life pretty much," Tyson explained. "Then I started boxing and stopped using it for like 16 years and after fighting I started using it again because I had these aches. I was on all these horrible medications they gave me that had me all strung out." So even though Tyson lost all of that money in the past and filed for bankruptcy, he was able to bounce back thanks to marijuana becoming legal in much of the United States.
Mike Tyson earned a mint for fighting again
There seemed to be a mix of shock and anticipation from the public when it was announced that Mike Tyson would come out of retirement to fight Roy Jones Jr., another boxing legend. The highly anticipated exhibition bout — which turned out to be a draw — went down on November 28, 2020, at Los Angeles' Staples Center. So how much did Tyson rake in for the eight-round fight? ESPN said both he and Jones were paid $1 million, while USA Today reported they received an equal share of the pay-per-view revenue. But it's possible that Tyson gave his earnings away, based on what he told TMZ a few months before the fight.
"It's going to be for various charities so nobody will ever have to worry about me getting rich or being jealous and saying I'm doing this for money," Tyson stated. "I'm not getting anything. I just feel good doing this 'cause I can."
He spoke to ESPN's Peter Rosenberg about boxing Jones as well and said it's different compared to his younger days because he's fighting out of want, not necessity. "I wasn't happy back then," said Tyson. "I always had to fight to make money. I was always behind on my taxes ... I just lost my energy and my desire for that stuff."
He gives back
Mike Tyson has shown that he has an altruistic side by giving luxury vehicles away during his money-making heyday but it's also been displayed through his charitable efforts. For one, he has the Mike Tyson Cares Foundation that's "committed to giving people living in lower-income communities a fighting chance at a better way of life," per its website. He also started We 2 Matter with his mother-in-law Dr. Rita Ali, an organization that helps formerly incarcerated women re-enter society. Tyson has a lot of interest in helping people with addiction and homelessness on top of that, which he communicated on Shacknews in 2020. "I wanna see some other people smile. I get off helping other people," he admitted. "I don't know, it's erotic to me to help somebody." Who knows? But Tyson may be the first person to ever associate giving back with eroticism but hey, whatever works, right?
Furthermore, the site Look to the Stars shows the once-feared boxer worked with the charities Laureus Sport for Good Foundation, which "help[s] children and young people overcome violence, discrimination and disadvantage in their lives." He's worked with Marty Hennessy Inspiring Children Foundation as well, an organization that aims to "Revolutionize education by providing an ideal model of youth development in underserved communities."