I must admit, I was a HUGE fan of his when he won the title for the first time. He seemed invincible, and was already a spectacle to watch, even if at that time it was because he was such a powerful puncher. He was troubled, we all knew it, but it was fun watching him take out larger opponents so quickly.
Then came all of his personal problems. Then his trainer/manager died. Then he was charged with rape.
Not that I condone his actions at all but I admittedly was still a boxing fan of his, and fully expected him to return to his old self in the ring when he got out of the slammer. A few decent looks from him, a snack on Holyfield's ear, and now he's all washed up. He recently got stopped for DUI and was found to be in possession of cocaine.
The man blew his big chance and will likely live the rest of his life in turmoil.
I met Mike in NYC, sort of, and got his autograph on a $5 bill. Think it's worth more than $5 now?