Mike Tyson, the legendary boxer, is known for his fierce punches both inside and outside the ring. One story that made the rounds on the internet concerned Tyson allegedly knocking out Hollywood star Wesley Snipes in a nightclub bathroom. What really happened that night? Well, Tyson’s former bodyguard, Rudy Gonzalez, in his book, The Inner Ring , claimed the athlete asked him to follow a woman named Hope, who was supposedly Tyson’s girlfriend at the time. Gonzalez shared that he saw Hope meeting Snipes at a club.
When Tyson found out, he reportedly rushed to the club in a rage. Gonzalez described the scene, “When Hope caught sight of him, she practically fell out of Snipes’ lap and onto the floor. The actor froze then waved a hand. ‘Now, Mike, now, Mike, we can do this together. I don’t want no problem.'” According to Gonzalez, Tyson and Snipes went into the bathroom, as per Sports Casting , before adding, “A couple minutes later we heard a big noise inside, and then Tyson emerged alone. After he was gone, I cracked open the bathroom door. Wesley Snipes was sitting against the far wall, head tilted to one side, unconscious.”
Dawg Wesley Snipes was out here squaring up with prime Mike Tyson pic.twitter.com/SYDVSgVKQf
— FACTUAL OPINIONS OF DRED (Habitual Line Stepper) (@FACTUALOPINION0) March 17, 2021
Quite the dramatic story, but is it true? Well, both Tyson and Snipes told very different versions of what happened that night. Snipes flat-out denied the incident ever took place. He stressed that he never even met the boxer at the club. Tyson, on the other hand, admitted to confronting Snipes but confirmed no punches were thrown. In his autobiography, Undisputed Truth , Tyson argued that Hope wasn’t his girlfriend, just a good friend staying at his place. She had been dating Snipes but they had broken up.
I respect Wesley for not backing down though. 98% of dudes is not even entertaining the idea of going up against Mike. Prime Mike at that
— fakePHILOSOPHY (@EST_1389_MAD) March 17, 2021
Tyson penned that he did approach Snipes at the club but instead of violence, he claimed their encounter was surprisingly calm. He quoted Snipes as having stated, “‘Mike, please don’t hit me in my face, that’s how I make a living.'” He further disclosed that he promised Snipes, telling him, “‘Man, don’t worry about that thing with Hope. She’s just hurt,'” and laughed it off. Gonzalez’s account is more spicy, but he admitted he didn’t actually see what happened in the bathroom.
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Notably, Tyson has a history of feuds with Hollywood stars over his romantic relationships. He once made a shocking accusation about seeing Hollywood A-lister, Brad Pitt , in bed with his then-wife, Robin Givens. Tyson, who married Givens in 1988 before their tumultuous divorce a year later, confessed he was ‘mad as hell’ when he discovered them. He described the same during In Depth With Graham Bensinger . “You should have seen his face when he saw me. I was due for a divorce but every day I would go to her house to have sex with her. This particular day, someone beat me to the punch. I guess Brad Pitt got there earlier than I did,” he said, as per The LadBible .