Boxing icon Mike Tyson has told Piers Morgan he was "high, hungry and tired" before he got into an altercation with a plane passenger back in April.
Tyson claims the antagonistic passenger threw a bottle of water on him after he was initially happy to converse and take pictures with the fan. Video captured on the flight saw Tyson appear to rain down punches on the passenger he was left bloodied by the incident.
Speaking on Morgan's 'Uncensored' show on Talk TV, Tyson recalled the incident and admitted he had been smoking cannabis before boarding the aircraft. “By the time I’m on the plane I’m high, hungry and tired," he told the TV host. "This guy keeps antagonising me and then I came to my senses and kicked his f***ing ass!
“I’m only joking. I wish I did kick his ass! I didn’t kick his ass. But my bodyguard jumped on top of him and I was hitting my bodyguard! For which I’m sorry. That guy was just an irritant really. He hit me with a water bottle." Tyson was then asked by Morgan if being antagonised by members of the public was a regular occurrence in his everyday life.
"Out of 10 people I may get one," he added. When asked how many he "deals with", Tyson joked: "Quite a few but I may only have to put my hands on one! "I can't play like that because my wife gets mad. She doesn't like my sense of humour. She thinks I'm going to get cancelled or some s***."
Tyson was not charged following the incident when the case was closed due to "the circumstances surrounding the confrontation." The San Mateo County District Attorney's Office added: "These include the conduct of the victim leading up to the incident, the interaction between Mr. Tyson and the victim, as well as the requests of both the victim and Mr. Tyson that no charges be filed in this case."
