In an interview with Tucker Carlson that aired Wednesday, former undisputed world heavyweight boxing champ Mike Tyson made the Fox News host react somewhat nervously as he described his fierce mentality before and during bouts.
“I wanted to kill them,” a stone-faced Tyson recalled when asked how he felt about his in-ring opponents. The comment prompted Carlson to laugh and exclaim, “Well, I can tell!”
“I’m laughing nervously,” Carlson continued, before following up by asking if Tyson “really felt that way,” as if one of the most decorated ex-boxers was joking.
ADVERTISEMENT
“Yeah,” came the response, just as serious. Carlson then opted for a better question, asking Tyson how he came to have that frame of mind.
Tyson cited his socio-economic background, which he had touched on in the same interview, a portion of which aired on Tuesday night as well.
“Just think about who I am. I don’t want to go back there no more. I don’t want to be in that poverty state of mind anymore. Not from a physical perspective; I don’t want to be poverty-stricken here,” he explained, pointing to his head.
“So, would you sit and think about it before a fight — think about the guy you were fighting?” was Carlson’s next question, even if the answer seemed obvious.
“Absolutely,” nodded Tyson. “The more you hurt them, the higher you go in life. That’s just my mentality: the more you hurt them, the more people love you.”
“That’s pretty intense,” the Fox host reacted. “And true, I guess.”
