Mike Tyson Offers Chad Johnson Insight, Likens Love to 'Insanity'
Mike Tyson, famed former pugilist who just wrapped up his "Undisputed" one-man play on Broadway, is giving insight on the domestic dispute involving NFL veteran Chad Johnson and his estranged reality television star wife Evelyn Lozada. According to Tyson, fame may have had a hand in Johnson's alleged head-butting of Lozada that resulted in an arrest, the loss of a job and the cancellation of a reality show.
Tyson, 46-year-old retired heavyweight boxer who himself has had to pick up his life following a rape conviction and allegations of abusing his ex-wife, actress Robin Givens, said he could identify with Johnson's current situation. In an interview with thisis50.com, Tyson spoke about fame having a hand in the domestic dispute between Johnson and Lozada.
"I can't talk about people's relationship when they lived it on television. Everybody knew what they were getting when they got into it," Tyson said. "This all comes down to believing in more than what you really are. That you can hurt people."
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However, Tyson insisted that he did not think Johnson was a bad person. Still, he suggested the athlete could have been caught up in the media attention that he received from being with Lozada on reality television show cameras.
"I'm that guy, I've been that guy so I know. I'm not saying this is a bad guy," he said. "The nicest person in the world can put that idiot box on you, that camera, and start selling you dreams. And you will believe these dreams, that you're somebody that you're actually not."
The former pugilist spoke about the importance of having the right perspective in a delicate situation such as Johnson's.
"And you always have to put things into perspective. Put who you are into perspective with the perspective of the world that you live in," Tyson said. "He's everything he never wanted to be in front of everybody without him even giving an opinion, or explaining why this happened."
While Tyson said he could identify with Johnson, he made no excuse for the troubled NFL star.
"Listen, you can't explain..head-butting a woman even if she struck you. You can't explain that," Tyson told thisis50.com. "From all my mistakes with women, that's why I'm explaining it to you. That (doesn't) mean they still don't love each other (at) that moment in time."
For Tyson, strategizing in disputes like Johnson's could have made a difference in the outcome.
"But if you're not conscious and strategize your actions, your emotions can take you places you never believed was conceivable of going," he said.
Tyson admitted that some people could liken love to insanity, and that people need to realize that they are not in control of their lives.
"If we didn't call it love, what would be the name of it? Insanity," Tyson said. "But the main objective, we want control but we have no control. We all know we're going to die but when we're in love we believe we're going to live forever."
