Boxing will never be the same; that alone makes for some sad times ahead for boxing fans. Just more than two weeks ago a man, a legend and a complete nut looked like a beaten child. Mike Tyson’s hurricane career finally came to an unavoidable end.

As a huge boxing fan and an even bigger Tyson fan I always find myself imagining what could have been. At one point Mike Tyson was the best athlete in the world. He had more potential than Michael Jordan or Lebron James. The sky was the limit for Iron Mike.

Unfortunately for Tyson he reached that sky via a jet plane and then proceeded to jump out of the plane with no parachute. It is disappointing for such a big fan of his to watch him sit on the mat, just knowing his career was over even before the announcement was made.

Tyson will be missed. His outrageous quotes will be deeply missed. His off the wall personality will be missed. Although Tyson’s legacy remains, it seems that he was never supposed to succeed in life. He is not capable of acting properly in public. It is depressing seeing a man with such great physical ability unable to deal with day-to-day situations.

Tyson was never socially accepted by many. He was a kid from the ghetto with too much money and fame. Maybe he said it best: “I’m the most irresponsible person in the world. The reason I’m like that is because, at 21, you all gave me $50 or $100 million, and I didn’t know what to do. I’m from the ghetto. I don’t know how to act. One day I’m in a dope house robbing somebody. The next thing I know, ‘You’re the heavyweight champion of the world.’ Who am I? What am I? I don’t even know who I am. I’m just a dumb child. I’m being abused. I’m being robbed by lawyers. I think I have more money than I do. I’m just a dumb pugnacious fool. I’m just a fool who thinks I’m someone. And you tell me I should be responsible?”

Although most of his quotes are off the wall and he usually don’t make complete sense, Tyson hits the nail on the head here. He is only trying to explain to everyone that he is unstable. The only problem is that the people around him didn’t care about Tyson the human being – they cared about Tyson the wild animal in the ring.

What Tyson did out of the ring was irrelevant to his handlers; as long as he was bashing other fighter’s heads in the ring, no one looked twice.

I am not saying the media or his handlers were the only reason for Tyson’s downfall. Mike did it himself. What I am saying is nearly anyone in the media could have tried to get Tyson help. One of his close friends, promoters, or trainers could have taken the necessary steps to help this man-child be as normal as possible.

Another question I was trying to figure out when the realization came that his career was over is: Where do we place this once ferocious boxer in the history of boxing?

There are only two or three boxers who were better than Tyson in their prime. Those boxers were Muhammad Ali, Joe Frazier and possibly Rocky Marciano.

Tyson should definitely rank in the top five of most boxing lists. There are few that were better than Tyson in the ring, yet no one could compare to him outside the ring. He made a living with is big mouth. He had what every man dreamt of: a ton of money, a beautiful wife, a big house, fast cars and the ability to put fear in any man who came across his path.

I would say that Tyson was, and still is, seen as a hero to many. He had a successful career. He made the most money of any boxer in history. He was a two-time heavyweight champion of the world and one of the most storied athletes ever.

In my mind Tyson is one of the top ten heavy weights of all-time. He drew massive crowds no matter what. Everyone wanted to know what he was going to do next. I guess in the end what I am trying to say is Tyson is irreplaceable; there are never any dull moments with him. With that said, there is no one like him, and if there ever will be, the media and fans will eat him up just as they did Tyson. People love unpredictable people, ones that change with the blink of an eye.

Tyson was one of those people and he will be missed, especially by me. I hope you find what you’ve been searching for throughout life, Mike.

Jon Knausz is a senior in journalism who believes that Mike Tyson Punchout for Nintendo is the greatest game ever made. He can be reached for comment at [email protected].