Meeting Mike Tyson: A Knockout Meet and Greet

On May 18, 2022, I met “Iron” (Mike Tyson) at the American Dream Mall in East Rutherford, NJ. 

Before I begin this story, I’d like to include a few side notes. The first is, yes, Mike Tyson is the greatest boxer of all time. The second is, yes, he will beat Jake Paul on July 20, 2024. 

While there was nothing particularly jaw dropping about this meet and greet experience, I find it most appropriate to share this experience, as the legend himself is about to come out of retirement.

As you could imagine, the line to meet him was extremely long and expanded throughout a large portion of the mall. The wait time wasn’t that long, though. The promoters of this event hosted a very well organized and smooth sailing event. Perhaps the best I’ve ever experienced.

I do wonder, however, why this took place in an eyeglasses store. Unless the venue was hoping that Tyson was going to hand out a few black eyes, this was a very odd place for this to be happening.

Mike Tyson arrives right on time and the fans go wild. The line starts moving, and rather quickly. Immediately, I knew exactly what type of experience this was going to be. The type where you get just enough time to say hello and goodbye. That’s fine, Mike didn’t strike me as a conversational guy, anyway, so I wasn’t overthinking what I wanted to say to him.

I walk up to Tyson, and I reach out to shake his hand. He accepts my gesture, and shakes my hand back. His strength pulls me in, moving my full body out of its place. The pull wasn’t intentional, but he certainly doesn’t know his own strength. He’s a really big boy. 

I thanked him for being there and expressed my gratitude for him coming out to meet the fans. I didn’t have time to say anything else. 

Tyson’s aura was like no other celebrity that I’ve ever met. His presence felt larger than life, just as much as it felt intimidating. He bit a chunk of someone’s ear off, after all. 

Before the meet and greet, I was contemplating what I wanted him to sign. I was torn between buying boxing gloves, a championship belt, a funko pop, or a poster. I decided to have him sign a red pair of boxing gloves. His autograph came out really nice, and I immediately went home and put them in a glass display case. It remains my favorite piece of signed memorabilia that I’ve gotten.

That is all for this week. Until next time, tell us about your celebrity meet and greets! Who have you met, and how were your experiences? Submit your story to our Ask The Cyclone segment!