At the age of 18, Mike Tyson was known as the baddest fighter on the planet. By the time he was 30, he had served several years in prison, lost his championship belt and was considered a washed up boxer by most sports critics.

However, Tyson’s boxing legacy will never be forgotten. His theatrics inside the ring were awe-inspiring. Tyson’s signature first round knock outs were sheer displays of speed and power, the sort that had never been witnessed before.

On June 12, Tyson was inducted into the boxing Hall of Fame. During his acceptance speech, Tyson spoke briefly, but provided a glimpse of the struggles that he faced throughout his career. 

”You reach a point in your life where you find out all you believed in was a lie and you want to start life all over again,” Tyson said.

In a sense, Tyson has been given a second chance at stardom and is adjusting to life after boxing. He is a co-star in the block buster hit “Hangover 2,” and he has one of  the top downloaded video games featured on the iPhone in “Mike Tyson’s Punch Out.” He’s also married and enjoying life as family man. Once recognized for his greatness in the ring, Tyson is now comfortable with being good at life.

“All this stuff started when I met Cus, and Bobby Stewart (a social worker and boxing fan who introduced Tyson to D’Amato),”

Tyson said.

“I was in reform school because I was always robbing people.”

When Tyson paused, the crowd encouraged him. He went on, but finally was overcome by the emotion of the moment.

“Hey guys, I can’t even finish this stuff. Thank you. Thank you,” Tyson said, then sat down.

Tyson finished his career with a record of 50-6 with 44 knockouts, personifying at times the best and worst of the sport.

Sylvester Stallone has also been inducted into the International Boxing Hall of Fame.

Sylvester told the New York ceremony:

“I never pretended to be a boxer, but I have an understanding of what goes on outside the ring.”