Mike Tyson vs. Carl Williams was a professional boxing match contested on July 21, 1989, for WBA, WBC, IBF and Lineal Heavyweight championships.
After Tyson’s dominating victory over Frank Bruno five months prior….negotiations for a potential bout with Carl Williams began, and on June 15, 1989, the fight was made official. The fight would only last 93 seconds….while becoming Tyson’s second quickest title fight after his 91-second victory over Michael Spinks the previous year.
Tyson and Williams began the fight trading punches with each other, though Tyson’s aggressiveness caused Williams to hold several times….then about 76 seconds into the round….Williams attempted to hit Tyson with a left jab….when Tyson countered and hit Williams with a left hook that sent Williams to the canvas….and although Williams was able to get back on his feet….and was seemingly ready to continue the fight….referee Randy Neumann stopped the fight and awarded Tyson the victory by TKO in a highly controversial decision.
Because of the controversial nature of Tyson’s victory….both Williams and his manager Ira Leibowitz urged the WBA, WBC and IBF to change the ruling from a Tyson victory to a “no-contest”….while also demanding a rematch between the two….however, all three boxing organizations, as well as Tyson’s camp refused a rematch….with Don King’s spokesman stating that Williams would have to “go out and knock out a few good fighters” before a rematch with Tyson could happen.
Tyson’s victory over Williams would mark the last successful defense of his Undisputed Heavyweight Championship. His next fight would be against little-known James “Buster” Douglas on February 11, 1990, in Tokyo, Japan. Despite being a 42-1 underdog, Douglas was able to knock out Tyson in the 10th round to pull off the upset and become the new Undisputed Champion.
