Tyson Has No Trouble With This Buster Bobbing Mathis Hangs On Until 3rd Round Before He’s Flattened

Mike Tyson spent almost three whole rounds doing his thing in Philadelphia on Saturday night. If that sounds like a joke, it was turned into something dignified and brave by Buster Mathis Jr., who made Tyson look both awkward and magnanimous.

Mathis, described by one WBC official recently as a “marshmallow with arms and legs,” should be toasted, not for lasting longer than Peter McNeeley’s 89 seconds Aug. 19, longer than the national anthem which took 2:10 Saturday night.

Before an estimated crowd of 8,000 at the Spectrum, Mathis showed the flip side to Tyson’s menacing persona as he entered a raging inferno armed with nothing but courage.

Or as his trainer, Joey Fariello, put it, “It only takes one bomb to defeat a lot of BBs.”

Mathis lasted until 2:32 of the third round, counted out by referee Frank Cappuccino after having risen at the count of 10.

Tyson immediately left the neutral corner - where he was given his 37th knockout on a 43-1 record - went over to give Mathis a hug and kiss.

According to Mathis, Tyson said. “You’re my brother. Just don’t forget that.”

At the post-fight press conference, feeling as chipper as he fought, Mathis added, “If he’s my brother, I’ve got to talk to my mother about that.”

Tyson had seemed confused by Mathis’ swarming style. His face remained calm, but he slipped into a southpaw stance several times, as if searching for the answer.

“I expected him to move more,” said Tyson. “I didn’t expect him to smother me like that. But I’m an expert at that. That is my style of fighting.”

It has not been Tyson’s style to be backed into the ropes, to miss punches by yards, even when showing his old power and speed, both of hand and foot.

But Mathis kept slipping and pressing, pushing his soft 224-pound body up against Tyson’s 219-pound rock.

Mathis was a mathematics major in college, more qualified to tutor Tyson than to hurt him. But he was slick enough to stay in with the former champion.

It worked until Mathis gave Tyson a little space. With his back to the ropes, Tyson found enough room to throw one of those terrifying right uppercuts.

“I saw it coming, but I slipped into it instead of moving away,” said Mathis, suffering his first loss after 20 victories.

He was frozen, a standing duck. Tyson landed a left and after the second of two more rights Mathis fell straight on his back.

“I know I looked good,” said Tyson. “I needed the work.”

He did not look very good. He needs more work before challenging Frank Bruno, a man he knocked out in five rounds almost seven years ago, for the WBC title March 16 in Las Vegas. He tried few combinations and didn’t throw a jab until the start of the third round. Anyone giving Mathis either of the first two rounds would not have been considered off base (only one judge, Ron Greenley, gave Mathis the second round).

“I could have continued,” Mathis said after narrowly missing beating the count. “It was close, but I felt very good.”

Someone asked if his late father, a former heavyweight contender who went into battle against Joe Frazier, Muhammad Ali, Jerry Quarry and Ron Lyle armed with marshmallow punches, would have been proud.

“Damn right,” said Mathis, 25, who kissed his father goodbye vainly giving mouth-to-mouth resuscitation when the old man collapsed and died Sept. 6.

He left the dressing room with this invocation: “Let’s go to war.”

When his promoter, Cedric Kushner, hugged him in the ring before the fight, Mathis protested:

“Damn it, Cedric, it’s not like you’re not going to see me again.”

He said fight tapes revealed opponents so “scared” that “Mike Tyson blew ‘em a kiss and they fell down.”

“I was not intimidated and that was half the battle,” he said.

On the undercard:

Julio Cesar Vasquez needed a knockout to regain the WBA junior middleweight championship and the Argentine got one with a thunderous left hand to Carl Daniels’ jaw early in the 11th round.

Already the WBC’s super welterweight champion, Terry Norris added the IBF’s version of the 154-pound title, or junior middleweight, to his resume with a unanimous 12-round decision over Paul Vaden.