WWE Hall of Famer Jim Ross has revealed billionaire Vince McMahon’s son bought Mike Tyson a motorbike and became his personal concierge ahead of WrestleMania 14.
Back in 1998 the Baddest Man on the Planet was suspended from boxing after biting a chunk out of Evander Holyfield’s ear.
Meanwhile WWE were in the midst of a Monday night war with rival company WCW, losing out in the ratings battle to their competitors.
However, the emergence of Stone Cold Steve Austin helped to turn the tide as the Attitude Era got fully underway.
And at the Showcase of the Immortals that year the Texas Rattlesnake was to be handed the torch by defeating Shawn Michaels for the WWE Title in the main event.
And to make it the biggest wrestling blockbuster of its time, WWE boss McMahon threw Tyson into the mix after convincing him to appear for several months before performing the role as special guest enforcer for the Mania showdown.
Now legendary commentator and former WWE Head of Talent Relations JR has recalled the lengths the company would go to keep Iron Mike happy.
Speaking on the Grilling JR Podcast, he said: “Shane McMahon had a lot to do with that, he became Tyson’s concierge, whatever Mike needed [Shane got him].
“I think during his time, Tyson wanted a motorcycle, I have no idea why, and Shane bought him a motorcycle.
“They tried to appease him, it’s like recruiting a college football player or basketball play.
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“The WWE tried to take care of Mike at every turn of the road and Mike needed money at that point in time.
“The McMahon family took care of him and it worked out. It was a good investment quite frankly because it paid off at the end of the day.”
Ross added: “It was a big moment, no doubt. It made a lot of headlines and put Austin in the spotlight he needed to be, very defiant, very anti-corporate stuff.
“It was a big night for us. I made sure [on commentary] when I said Austin and Tyson, I didn’t say Tyson and Austin, because I wanted to give our guy Stone Cold the top billing.”
Tyson recently returned to the boxing ring at the age of 54 and banked over £7million.
The Veteran fought out an entertaining draw with Roy Jones Jr in an exhibition bout in November and plans for further fights later this year.
The icon also showed off his incredible speed and strength this week as he prepares for his £200million trilogy showdown with old rival Holyfield, who he is in talks with to battle in Dubai.
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