That sparked interest from Australian boxing promoter Brian Amatruda who was keen to get Tyson downunder for a charity bout against one of several sports stars, including former All Black Williams – with reports that an offer of $1 million was on the table.
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Amatruda has promoted cards featuring the likes of Danny Green, Lucas Browne and Anthony Mundine, and said several of the part-time boxers who bring in big audiences in Australia – including Williams, NRL legend Paul Gallen and AFL great Barry Hall – would fill Australian arenas if paired up against Tyson.
Sydney promoter Max Markson told The Daily Telegraph that Tyson got in touch via email and it was a no to the offer from Amatruda.
"Mike felt it would be an insult to boxing if he fought a footballer," Markson said.
"He doesn't have any interest in coming to Australia at the moment – plus, there is no international travel anyway because of the coronavirus – but said if anything changes I'll be the first to know."
Tyson's first video showing him hitting mitts in a gym not only generated more than 9 million views in just a few days but also some buzz about just what the aging former champion might have left.
"He hasn't hit mitts for almost 10 years. So I didn't expect to see what I saw," trainer Rafael Cordeiro told ESPN. "I saw a guy with the same speed, same power as guys 21, 22 years old.
