![]() He was 6ft 3in, athletic, could punch, and after a 22-fight amateur career he turned pro in 1982. Like many troubled teens, Gross found boxing and discovered he had an aptitude for it. His father was stabbed to death on the streets when Reggie was only three days old and by the age of only 13, Gross was in juvenile detention following a purse snatching carried out with what turned out to be a toy gun. Much like Tyson, whose early life on the streets of Brooklyn was no picnic, Gross had a tough upbringing. ![]() Just three months after his fight with Tyson on HBO, Gross committed the first of three brutal murders he would eventually be convicted of carrying out as contract killings. What Tyson may not have known was that as well as being a talented if underachieving boxer, Gross was also an enforcer for a violent drug gang in his native Baltimore. “He was a tough fighter they called ‘the Spoiler’ because he had upset some good fighters, including Bert Cooper and Jimmy Clark, who was a great American Olympian,” Tyson said later. ![]() 5 Tyson beat Gross in one round and five months later became the youngest heavyweight champion in history Credit: Gettyīeforehand, Tyson was aware that ‘Rugged Reggie’ could be more dangerous than his 18-4 (12 KOs) record suggested – he had a reputation for ruining the unbeaten records of heavyweight prospects. ![]()
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