Mike Tyson: did former boxer punch passenger on a plane? Video of fight explained

US authorities are investigating an incident in which former heavyweight boxing champion Mike Tyson was recorded on video punching a fellow first-class passenger aboard a plane at San Francisco International Airport.

This is everything you need to know.

What happened?

A video clip of former heavyweight boxing champion Mike Tyson punching a fellow first class passenger on a flight has gone viral on social media.

The video shows Tyson leaning over the back of his seat repeatedly hitting the unidentified man in the heat, drawing blood.

The footage was first shared by TMZ, which said it was recorded on a Jet Blue plane bound for Florida.

Prior to the physical altercation, the man is seen on the video standing over Tyson’s seat, waving his arms and talking animatedly while the former boxer sits quietly.

According to SFGate, a San Francisco news outlet, Tyson had been in San Francisco for the annual 420 cannabis festival, held in Golden Gate Park. He was reportedly promoting his cannabis brand called Tyson 2.0

What have witnesses said?

Sarah Burchfield, a passenger on the flight in question, told SFGate about the incident.

Burchfield said that she saw the man who Tyson punched earlier at an airport bar.

She said: “When I boarded the flight, I thought, “Oh, no, that drunk guy is on our flight”.”

She said that she passed Tyson’s seat in the first class section of the plane when she boarded.

Burchfield added: “The belligerent guy was sitting right behind him and I saw they were interacting.”

A short time later, she said that she heard the confrontation in first class.

“Obviously it has to be from Mike Tyson… because it’s Mike Tyson. I don’t recall it being acknowledged by the flight attendants,” Burchfield said. “It happened, we all looked and gawked, then moved on.”

She added: “Obviously violence is not the answer to any interaction, but if you’re messing around with Mike Tyson, maybe back off.

“No one deserves to be punched in the face but don’t mess with a volatile person.”

What have the authorities said?

According to San Francisco police, officers responded on Wednesday (20 April) at around 10pm to a “physical altercation” on a plane at the airport’s domestic terminal.

Officials said: “Officers arrived and detained two subjects that were believed to be involved in the incident.

“One subject was treated at the scene for non-life-threatening injuries.

“That subject provided minimal details of the incident and refused to cooperate further with the police investigation.”

A statement from the authorities have said that both individuals involved in the incident have been released pending further investigation.

San Francisco police said the video has been shared with the San Mateo County Sheriff’s Office, which has jurisdiction over the airport.

Sheriff’s officials added: “We are not releasing information on the incident because it is an active investigation”.

What has Mike Tyson said about the incident?

While Tyson himself has not responded to the altercation, representatives for the former boxer have said that Tyson was dealing with an “aggressive passenger”.

They said: “Unfortunately, Mr Tyson had an incident on a flight with an aggressive passenger who began harassing him and threw a water bottle at him while he was in his seat.”

The reaction online

The general reaction to the video going viral on Twitter is that if you’re going to harass someone on a flight, it probably shouldn’t be someone who was listed as “the hardest hitter in heavyweight history” by ESPN.