Tyson, Williams: First Time Was Different

They met six years ago in a neighborhood gym in White Plains, N.Y., Mike Tyson, then a 16-year-old amateur boxer being nurtured by the late Cus D’Amato, and Carl (The Truth) Williams, 23, a promising professional heavyweight.

They would test each other’s strength and courage three straight days, but now, not surprisingly, each remembers these learning experiences quite differently.

“That first day, he came at me like I’d cursed his mother,” said Williams, who challenges Tyson for his undisputed heavyweight title at the Convention Center on Friday night.

“We’d been told by D’Amato not to try to hurt his kid. That he was just a baby, getting his feet wet. But he tried to tear my head off and bloodied my nose.

“I went home raging mad, and all I could think about was getting even,” Williams added. “The next two days, I kicked some butt and D’Amato wouldn’t let us near him again.”

Tyson, on the other hand, remembers getting all the best of it and sending his older, more-seasoned rival into hiding. For public consumption, the champion, turned 23 and a granite-like 219 1/4 pounds, says, “They were real good workouts, but that was then, and this is now.”

Indeed. While Tyson made a meteoric rise through the heavyweight ranks and solidified the title while stretching his unblemished record to 36-0, including 32 knockouts, Williams (22-2, 17 K0s) has been on a treadmill since May 1985, when, as a decided underdog, came close to dethroning then-heavyweight champion Larry Holmes.

The prohibitive 12-1 odds indicate Williams is given even less of a chance than Tyson’s last four title challengers -- Holmes, Tony Tubbs, Michael Spinks and Frank Bruno -- who lasted a combined 12 rounds.

But Williams and his handlers insist that he will not be like these previous victims.

“We’ve all heard it before,” said Williams’ trainer, Carmen Graziano. “A lot of guys have said that they were going to beat Tyson and then let him walk all over them.

“I’ve been associated with four champions, and Williams has a better jab than any of them. You only see it on the way back. You don’t expect a guy 6-4 and 218 pounds to be this fast. Tyson is quick, but my guy is quicker.