Did Mike Tyson ever fight actor Wesley Snipes?
Mike Tyson has had many encounters with a number of people, some of which turned physical and ugly. One of the most interesting stories involving 'Iron Mike’ is the supposed fight between him and Blade actor Wesley Snipes.
The story came to light after Tyson’s former bodyguard, Rudy Gonzalez, wrote about it in his tell-all book The Inner Ring. According to Gonzalez the former heavyweight champion once knocked out Snipes inside a restaurant bathroom over a fight with a woman.
Gonzalez claimed that Tyson was seeing a woman named Hope, who left one night and told Mike that she was going to visit a friend. Gonzalez said Tyson instructed him to tail her, which he said he did, and found out that the friend she was visiting was the Hollywood actor.
Gonzalez said he informed Tyson of the situation and the latter shortly arrived in the restaurant. He supposedly confronted Snipes, who asked him to talk to him in private.
Tyson's former bodyguard said the two entered the bathroom and a couple of minutes later, they heard a loud noise inside, and then Tyson emerged alone. Gonzales took a peek inside the bathroom and claimed he saw Snipes unconscious.
Mike Tyson and Wesley Snipes deny physical altercation
Mike Tyson and Wesley Snipes have both denied that they got physical with one another.
Sportscasting reported that a few years after The Inner Ring was released, Snipes appeared on The Howard Stern Show and said that Mike Tyson’s former bodyguard made up the story.
Tyson, for his part, clarified in his best-selling autobiography, Undisputed Truth that he did confront Snipes, but nothing ever got physical. He likewise said that he was never romantically involved with Hope and that they were only friends.
Apparently, Hope had gotten involved with Snipes but they had split up while Tyson was out of town. Tyson, being a friend to Hope, said he confronted Snipes when the opportunity came. An excerpt from Tyson’s book says:
“A few days later I made plans to meet Hope at RnB. I sat next to her and asked her how school was, when we saw Wesley Snipes walk in. I excused myself and walked over to him. Wesley looked up, saw me, and panicked. ‘Mike, please don’t hit me in my face, that’s how I make a living,’ he said. ‘Man, don’t worry about that thing with Hope. She’s just hurt.’ We both laughed about it.”