Mike Tyson Appears to Punch Passenger on Flight to Florida

On his first album, Will Smith–irony of ironies–rapped about thinking he could beat Mike Tyson. This wasn’t today’s weed-smoking, podcasting, peacenik Tyson; The Fresh Prince’s everyman’s fantasy was to take down the Baddest Man on the Planet during the cocaine ‘80s, when Tyson once beat up another boxer on the street in Harlem so bad he thought he killed him. Apparently some people don’t remember that Mike Tyson, and, well, that lack of historical context doesn’t go so well for them. Video footage obtained by TMZ shows what happens when folks don’t leave Iron Mike alone. A passenger on a flight from San Francisco to Florida got a little too lubricated and decided to pester Tyson from the seat behind him. Tyson initially remains calm but eventually pummeled the guy with a few quick punches.

Tyson reportedly walked off the plane before it took off; TMZ reports that he was still scheduled to speak at the Benzinga Cannabis Capital Conference in Miami Beach Wednesday evening. Organizers have labeled that event as “The Leading Cannabis Investment Conference in North America,” and Tyson launched his own cannabis business, Tyson 2.0, in 2021. His “Hotboxin” podcast is essentially a series of conversations with other celebs that happens as they smoke weed.

As for the passenger he lumped up? Images of him have appeared on TMZ and across social media with blood on the side of his face and forehead. There’s no word on any potential charges against Tyson. Somehow, people have made a habit of testing Iron Mike’s gangsta lately. TMZ reported last month that a man challenged him to a fight and drew a pistol on the former undisputed heavyweight champ at a club in Los Angeles. There were no injuries there. In 2019, hip-hop manager Wack 100 was reportedly on the wrong end (is there ever a right end?) of a fight with Tyson over remarks the music exec made about the late Tupac Shakur’s sexuality; Shakur and Tyson were friends.