As 58-year-old former world heavyweight boxing champion Mike Tyson prepares to take on 28-year-old YouTuber turned boxer Jake Paul tonight at AT&T Stadium in Dallas, Texas, I want to take you back to the 10 February 1990, to Muntilan, Central Java, Indonesia.

We were on our way back to the city of Yogyakarta from shooting the Borobudur Run 10k for our ESPN Road Race of the Month series. Billed as the world‘s richest run, the Borobudur 10K offered $1 million in bonus money, along with hefty prize and appearance fees for the best distance runners in the world to try to break the road 10K world records.

Sponsored by Indonesian businessman Bob Hasan, chairman of the Indonesian Athletics Association, the event was held 40 kilometers outside the city of Yogyakarta in Central Java near the world’s largest Buddhist temple, Borobudur, built in the 9th century. The event aimed to promote tourism and healthy lifestyles in the region. 

Hasan hired former University of Oregon star and Nike exec Rudy Chapa to recruit the elite fields, with the promise of $500,000 going to any man or woman breaking the world 10K road record.

Notwithstanding Rudy’s best efforts and the generous bonuses, the high heat and oppressive humidity of central Java made it impossible for even this world-class field to knock down the existing marks. 

Still, the finishing times were spectacular, just the same. Ethiopia’s Addis Abebe won the men’s race in 27:39, beating Mexico’s Arturo Barrios by 14 seconds. Germany’s Kathrin Ullrich bested Great Britain’s Jill Hunter by 11 seconds in 31:44 to take the women’s title.

After a long morning working in the heat and humidity, our TV crew piled into our van for the drive back to the Garuda Hotel on Jalan Maliaboro in Yogyakarta not far from the Sultan’s Palace where we were hosted for lunch the day before.

Passing the green rice fields in the stifling air, we decided to stop on our way back to grab some food and drink. 

As we came through the town of Muntilan, we saw an open-air restaurant called Rimah Makau. We parked and walked in. There, we saw a group of 15 to 20 men seated around a small TV in the back corner while what appeared to be their families sitting around the wooden tables of the restaurant. 

Wondering what the men were watching, we wandered over. And there on a small black-and-white TV, live from Tokyo, Japan, was the Buster Douglas vs. Mike Tyson heavyweight championship title fight!

Forgetting our thirst, the five of us stood behind the group, surprised to see the world championship fight being shown for free. The Indonesian men glanced up at us, then spun back around as the bell sounded for round six.

We were so caught up in the road race, we forgot  the championship fight was even taking place over in Tokyo. That it was on free television was surprising because we came from a pay-per-view country.

What was even more surprising was how Buster Douglas seemed to be winning the fight. At the time, 23-year-old Tyson was the indestructible, undefeated, undisputed, youngest ever, heavyweight boxing champion. 29-year-old Douglas was the very talented but never really worked hard enough at his craft challenger with a 29-4-1 record. He came into the fight as a 42-1 betting underdog, ranked #7 by Ring Magazine. Tyson’s record stood at 37-0 with 33 knockouts.

Yet here in the sixth round, Douglas‘s left jab seemed to be confusing Tyson. Quickly following his jabs, Douglas ripped pinpoint rights landing hard on the champion’s head and arms, ala Rocky Marciano.

Like all fight fans, the group of Indonesian men jabbered away as they watched, offering their own personal analysis. We did, too, right behind them, all of us extending shadow punches to punctuate our commentary. 

As was his style, Tyson kept crouching low, bobbing forward, loading up for the big KO punch. But even in the clinches, it was Douglas who manhandled Tyson. He looked just as hard as the undefeated champion, but at 6’4”, was 6” taller. 

In the final seconds of the eighth round, as Douglas once again pressed Tyson near the ropes, Mike took one step back, lowered his entire right side and delivered a classic, brutal upper cut. Douglas’s shoulders quivered from the blow, and down he went. 

This is what we had been waiting for, anticipating, all along, Tyson, the monster, returns to destroy yet another opponent. But come the bell, Douglas got up at the count of nine and made it safely back to his corner. 

In the ninth, we thought, we would see the end of the story. After having an off night early, Tyson would tear the guy’s head off and return order to the boxing universe.

But as the round went on, it was as if the eighth round never happened. Douglas was right back in control, and he won the round convincingly, even hurting the champion late with sharp punches and an agile defense. 

What we found out later was that Douglas’s mother, Lula Pearl, died from a stroke just 23 days before the fight. Before her passing, Douglass promised that he would beat Tyson in her honor. Perhaps for the first time in his career, Douglas was motivated to train hard. The talent he had, but never trained up to, was now sharp and apparent. For his part, Tyson had looked past this opponent and was now paying the price. 

Into round 10, and Tyson looked to be on the defensive again. It was Douglas as the aggressor and boom! An uppercut of his own staggered Tyson. Then, in quick order, a left, right, and left again in combination sent the champ reeling to the canvas for the first time in his career. 

In an obvious daze, Tyson lost his mouthpiece, then reflexively pawed at it to try to reinsert it.

But it was over! 1964 revisited, Cassius Clay in a stunner over Sonny Liston. 

The restaurant in Muntilan went wild. The Indonesia guys all leapt from their seats. We began high-fiving them. The stadium in Tokyo rocked, the ring in a state of pandemonium. 

James Buster Douglas had KOd Mike Tyson in the 10th in one of the great upsets in boxing history. And here we were watching it all in Muntilan, Central Java, Indonesian. What a world. 

You don’t think sport is the great unifier? 

Good luck and good health to both men tonight. I’ll be watching from home.

END