Mike Tyson: The Most Haunting Opponent of His Career

Mike Tyson fought some of the best heavyweight boxers of his generation.

From Lennox Lewis, Evander Holyfield, and Michael Spinks to Larry Holmes and Frank Bruno, Tyson shared the ring with numerous boxing legends. Yet, according to Tyson, Pinklon Thomas was his toughest opponent ever.

“No one mentioned above was considered my hardest opponent,” Tyson revealed. “That distinction goes to Pinklon ‘Pink’ Thomas, who I knocked out in just six rounds in 1987.”

“I think it was Pinklon Thomas, he was my toughest opponent,” Tyson shared with History Bites. “I never thought of him, but two years ago, I watched a tape of him, a friend of mine told me to watch. I punched him seventeen times, straight in the face, he went down but those were seventeen punches! Seventeen punches, all as hard as I could, and the last one just knocked him out. I thought, ‘Oh my god, that was the toughest fight, he took seventeen punches to the jaw!’”

Thomas held the WBC heavyweight title from 1984 to 1986 and secured notable victories against former world champions Tim Witherspoon and Mike Weaver.

These achievements are impressive, but even more remarkable is that Thomas was battling a heroin addiction at the time.

Thomas first tried heroin at age 12 and by 14, he was spending $150 a day on it. “I chose to join the projects, I didn’t come from the projects, I chose the lifestyle. I was an athlete in elementary school,” Thomas told The Ring.

“In seventh grade, I started shooting heroin. I started early. I hung out with older guys because I was bigger than the kids my age… I did crazy things to get money. I did what I had to do to feed my habit. I did illegal things – armed robbery, cash register thefts, snatch-and-grabs. I did all kinds of crazy stuff.”

Thomas married at 17 and moved to Seattle with his wife. However, they were soon evicted because Thomas couldn’t pay the bills due to his costly addiction.

Thomas fought notable names, including Evander Holyfield. After being evicted, they moved to the projects, where the Michigan-born fighter first experienced boxing.

Wanting to impress, Thomas lied to his first coach, claiming he was a professional boxer but was quickly found out. “I had just shot heroin and a cocaine speedball,” he said. “I told the same lie to the trainer, Joe West. He asked me to hit the bag. I didn’t know if I was right-handed or left-handed, and after three or four minutes, I ran out and threw up everywhere.”

Thomas turned professional in 1978 after only three amateur fights (2-1). He teamed up with Muhammad Ali’s former trainer, Angelo Dundee, and began a 25-fight unbeaten streak (24-0-1) on his way to winning the WBC heavyweight title from Witherspoon.

He defended his title against Weaver but lost it to Trevor Berbick in March 1986 by unanimous decision. He won three consecutive fights against lesser-known opponents before earning a shot at Tyson, who held the WBA and WBC belts at the time.

Thomas initially found success with his jab but ultimately succumbed in the sixth round when Tyson unleashed a barrage of fifteen punches to end the fight. Despite the defeat, Thomas claimed Tyson did not impress him.

“Unfortunately, six weeks before the fight, I injured my shoulder,” he told Pro Boxing Fans. “I thought my experience and left jab would help me win because I didn’t have a right hand due to the shoulder injury. I did well for two rounds, then my glove tore. It took about nine minutes and 40 seconds to get a new glove, giving him a chance to rest.”

Thomas retired in 1993 with a record of 43-7-1 after losses to Holyfield, Riddick Bowe, and Tommy Morrison. He now works as a motivational speaker and founded his charity, ‘Pride in Neighborhood Kids,’ to help at-risk youth get off the streets.