Mike Tyson has admitted to using fentanyl ‘quite a few times’ while at the summit of world boxing in the 1990s.
Tyson’s battles with drug and sex addiction are well known but during a recent podcast appearance, the 59-year admitted to using the opioid to relieve pain at the height of his career.
He said on ‘The Katie Miller Podcast’: ‘It was a painkiller, and I used to use it to patch up my toe.
‘It was like heroin – once it wears off and you take the Band-Aid off, you start withdrawing, throwing up, just like if you were on heroin.
‘It was illegal if it [was] caught in my bloodstream. It was a narcotic, my friend told me. It was brand new. I told my friend “could I use this?” No one ever heard of it.’
Fentanyl is a potent synthetic opioid approved in the US by the Food and Drug Administration for use as a pain relief and anesthetic. It is approximately 100 times more potent than morphine and 50 times more potent than heroin.
Mike Tyson has admitted to using fentanyl ‘quite a few times’ while at the summit of boxing
The 59-year-old (pictured in 1996) admitted to using the opioid to relieve pain in his toe
In his autobiography The Undisputed Truth, Tyson once revealed how he had taken marijuana and cocaine before his fight against Lou Savarese in 2000, and admitted to taking drugs prior to his defeat by Danny Williams in 2004.
It was an addiction Tyson struggled with for years. He even revealed how he was ‘on the verge of dying’ and admitted to lying about his progress ahead an interview with The Fight Network in November 2020.
‘I want to change my life,’ said Tyson. ‘I want to live a different life now. I want to live my sober life. I don’t want to die. I’m on the verge of dying because I’m a vicious alcoholic.
‘I haven’t drank or took drugs in six days, and for me that’s a miracle. I’ve been lying to everybody else who thinks I was sober, but I’m not. This is my sixth day. I’m never going to use again.’
Tyson is now advocating for the national legalization of marijuana and has made an impassioned plea to Donald Trump to make it happen.
Marijuana consumption is completely legal for both recreational and medicinal use in 25 of the 50 American states – while only Idaho, Kansas, Nebraska, North Carolina, South Carolina, and Wyoming still have it completely illegal across the board.
Tyson recently appeared on ‘Fox & Friends’ to make his case for legalizing the drug.
He appeared on behalf of the ‘Coalition of Athletes and Entertainers Supporting President Trump’s Policy Objectives’ – a group including basketball stars Kevin Durant and Allen Iverson, boxer Roy Jones Jr, and former NFL stars Dez Bryant, Antonio Brown, and Ricky Williams.
‘This is something they wanted to do for so many years, but didn’t know how to go about doing it,’ Tyson said on the show. ‘And I was just blessed enough to have the perfect team for this genre of sports… medicine.’
Tyson also added that the group is receiving help from The Weldon Project – a group which, according to their website, is ‘dedicated to funding social change and financial aid for those who are still serving prison time for cannabis-related offenses.’
Tyson is set to return to the ring again at the age of 59 next year – to fight Floyd Mayweather
Tyson drew a huge crowd – and plenty of health fears – when he came up against Jake Paul
‘I’m just so happy to be a part of this and be a part with other athletes, not knowing that they were really with this whole situation in making cannabis legal. I never knew other athletes wanted that as well,’ Tyson added.
Tyson and Floyd Mayweather announced last week that they’ll be fighting next year, leaving fans worried for ‘Iron Mike’s’ safety if the bout really does go ahead.
Tyson was forced to postpone his fight with Jake Paul last year due to an ulcer, and was hardly able to lay a finger on the YouTuber when they finally squared off as he lost by unanimous decision.
‘Mike Tyson is gonna die in there,’ one fan claimed.
‘Who the f*** watched Mike Tyson look half dead fighting Jake Paul and thought this was a good idea??,’ another asked.
‘Mike should sit this one out,’ a third added.
And a fourth warned: ‘They must cancel it. Tyson won’t survive.’
