When did Freddie Roach train Mike Tyson?
Freddie Roach, one of the greatest boxing trainers of all time, took Mike Tyson under his wing in late 2002.
Following Tyson's devastating defeat at the hands of Lennox Lewis, 'Iron Mike' knocked on Roach's door and the legendary trainer was more than willing to sharpen his skills.
Roach was part of Tyson's camp for precisely two of his fights, against Clifford Etienne and Danny Williams.
Coming off a shocking loss opposite Lewis, the then 36-year-old was on the road to redemption before his highly-anticipated comeback against Etienne.
Tyson put in a clinical performance on fight day, finishing Etienne in the first round with a thunderous right hook.
After a positive start to his new stint with Roach, Mike Tyson's next fight was against Danny Williams.
The former heavyweight great dominated the first two rounds but was visibly exhausted as the fight progressed further. As a result, Williams stunned Tyson with a brutal combination in the fourth round that dropped him to the canvas. Failing to beat the referee's count, Williams was declared the winner.
Tyson realized it was the right time to part ways with Roach as he replaced the Wild Card Boxing Club owner with Jeff Fenech for his next fight.
Freddie Roach details what it was like to coach Mike Tyson
Although the duo of Mike Tyson and Freddie Roach survived little over a year, Roach did enjoy training the legendary boxer.
"Mike is a great guy and I did train him for a couple of fights before the end of his career, but his heart wasn't really in it at that time. If he didn't knock you out in a couple of rounds, he would get a torn meniscus in his knee or an injury somewhere here or there. But the thing is, Mike is a great puncher, he trains very hard. Being with Mike for two fights...it was a lot of fun, I enjoyed it. Catching him on the mitts was very difficult and a lot of fun," Roach told DAZN.
For Roach, being on the receiving end of Mike Tyson's stinging punches was anything but fun. During training, the 61-year-old would often get hit by Tyson, and he certainly didn't like that.
"He was very explosive. He hit me in the chin one day, I didn’t go down but I was definitely knocked out on my feet. He hit me so hard. His speed was the big factor. He has it on tape somewhere but he won’t give it to me," Roach told Fight Hub TV.