"You’re a piece of sh*t. F*** you." - When Mike Tyson cursed out chat show host on live TV for bringing up his criminal charges

Mike Tyson once directed a verbal onslaught against a television host in response to the latter bringing up the boxing icon's past conflict with the law.

Back in 2012, Tyson debuted his one-man show, 'Mike Tyson: Undisputed Truth,' featuring him speaking about his personal and professional life. On Sept. 10, 2014, a segment was aired on the Toronto-based CP24 channel, featuring Canadian journalist Nathan Downer hosting Tyson and Alex Choko (promoter of Tyson's show).

Tyson was fresh off a meet-and-greet with Toronto mayor Rob Ford, who was looking to get re-elected. Downer brought up Tyson's ra*e case from the 1990s and questioned:

"Some of your critics would say there's a race for mayor. We know you're a convicted rap*st. This could hurt his campaign. How would you respond to that?"

Mike Tyson replied:

"Hey, I don't know who said that. You're the only one I heard say that. You know what I mean? And I don't have no comment to that, you know, because it's negative, and you're being negative. And I met the mayor, and there's nothing they can do about it."

Alex Choko chimed in and recounted that he and Tyson met Toronto boxing legend George Chuvalo. Tyson then intervened and jibed at Downer:

"It's so interesting that you come across like a nice guy, but you're really a piece of sh*t, with that comment. You know what? F*** you. That was a piece of sh*t."

With Downer noting that Tyson couldn't use such language on live TV, 'Iron Mike' fired back by saying:

"Hey, I don't care. What are you gonna do about it?"

Downer then seemingly pivoted to Tyson's one-man show booked for that night. The pugilist replied by saying that his show speaks for itself. Moreover, Choko highlighted that it was a Broadway production, which traveled to Vegas and 28 cities in the United States of America. Choko added that they're also headed to Monte Carlo, Monaco, that October.

Downer questioned Tyson whether the one-man show or boxing was more nerve-wracking. The combat sports megastar answered by lambasting the reporter again:

"It's more nerve-wracking to be here talking to a rat piece of sh*t like you. No, because you're a piece of sh*t. We didn't have to. You're a piece of sh*t."

Downer then stated that they were going to wrap up the interview. He thanked them for coming in, in response to which Tyson directed a parting shot by saying:

"F*** you."

Watch Mike Tyson's famous interview segment below:

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Nathan Downer's interview aftermath and Mike Tyson's boxing comeback

The National Post reported that the CBSC (Canadian Broadcast Standards Council) reprimanded the Toronto-based CP24 TV station for breaching the code of ethics of the Canadian Association of Broadcasters. The panel held CP24 accountable for airing the expletive-laden interview, deemed unsuitable for daytime viewers, including children. In a since-deleted tweet, Downer wrote:

"No ill will toward Mike Tyson. He lashed out at me and that's okay. Not taking it personally."

Mike Tyson has consistently refuted the ra*e allegations levied against him by Desiree Washington. Tyson was convicted in that case in 1992 and received a six-year prison sentence.

'Iron Mike' was released in 1995 on grounds of good behavior. Presently, the ex-undisputed heavyweight champion boxer is booked to fight Jake Paul under a professional boxing rule-set on Nov. 15, 2024.