Mike Tyson Used To Get an Enormous Bonus For Knocking Out Opponents In The 1st Round—Here’s Exactly How Much

In his heyday, Mike Tyson was one of the most dominant and fearsome boxers to ever step into the ring. He was known for his fierce in-ring persona and his intimidating aura often defeated his opponents long before they stepped into the ring. His natural talent and relentless work ethic led to him garnering an immense amount of wealth, which he spent on frivolous items such as $7 million necklaces.

When Tyson was in his prime, he became famous for ending boxing matches quickly, knocking many of his opponents out within minutes of the fight starting. His career record of 50-6 boasts an impressive 44 wins by knockout, a feat that is beyond impressive. In fact, Tyson became so good at knocking out his opponents that he set wagers before his fights, one that stipulated he’d earn an additional $200,000 if he was able to knock them out in the first round. 

Mike Tyson was one of the most dominant boxers of all time

Mike Tyson is revered by many as one of the greatest boxers to ever step into the squared circle. His success in professional boxing can’t be denied, and his 50 career wins against 6 losses proves he was a generational talent.

Tyson began his boxing career in his teenage years, after his first trainer, Bobby Stewart, discovered his natural talent while Tyson was in a juvenile detention center. He showed promise in his early years as an amateur boxer, winning gold medals in the 1981 and 1982 Junior Olympic Games, and made his professional debut at 18 years old. 

In his first match as a professional, Tyson defeated Hector Mercedes via a first-round technical knockout (TKO). 26 of Tyson’s first 28 fights were won by knockout or TKO, 16 of which were in the first round. He went on to defeat Trevor Berbick by TKO for the WBC Heavyweight Championship at just 20 years old, becoming the youngest heavyweight champion in history. 

Mike Tyson received $200,000 for first round KOs

In the prime of his career, Tyson was one of the highest earning athletes in the world. He earned over $30 million for several of his highest profile matches, and had career earnings of over $400 million, according to Forbes. 

After many of his matches, he could be seen holding up several stacks of $100 bills, although there’s more to the story; Tyson had become so dominant that he’d begun to wager money on his matches, betting that he could defeat his opponents within minutes of the fight starting. During a recent interview with rapper Jim Jones on his Hotboxin’ podcast, Tyson explained how he earned what he called “F— you money.”

“That’s a bet you make with somebody. Everytime I knocked somebody out in the first round, I’d get a […] $200,000 bonus.”

He later revealed that he would often take the bonus earnings and spend it all at the club, on girls, on jewelry, or he simply give it away. Unfortunately, Tyson’s reckless spending habits caught up with him, and he had to file for bankruptcy in 2003.