MIKE TYSON broke down in tears as he described watching Muhammad Ali lose to Larry Holmes with his mentor Cus D’Amato.
Tyson was just 15 when he witnessed his inspiration Ali get brutally dominated by Holmes in 1980..
That night D’Amato, who trained and adopted the heavyweight legend, turned to Iron Mike and asked whether he was ready to avenge the heartbreaking defeat for his hero.
Tyson recalled the occasion during a chat with American YouTube star and public speaker Tony Robbins, and begins to sob as he opens up.
He said: “I’m 15 now, I had a couple of championships and we are watching Ali fight Larry Holmes.
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“It was really bad, excuse me about crying. It was really bad.
“So Cus says… ah, man I can’t believe I’m doing this, ‘Are you ready to face and dethrone this man after he beat up Ali?’
“He taught me to become the greatest fighter in the world.”
D’Amato adopted Tyson when he was 16 years old following the death of his mother Lorna.
The veteran trainer was a pivotal part of the boxer’s early career but tragically died when Tyson was 19.
A year later he would become the youngest heavyweight champion of all time, but credits every ounce of success to D’Amato.
An overwhelmed Tyson told Robbins: “I just don’t know where it came from, how I meet this old man and he made me this fighter. I still don’t understand that to this day.
“My psychiatrist, my therapist, he was my everything.”
Tyson kept his promise to D’Amato and in 1988 knocked out Holmes in four rounds.
Before the fight, Ali spoke with the champion in the ring – and urged him to exact redemption for him.
Tyson revealed: “(Ali said) Get him for me – I got him!”
