‘I Saw It First-Hand’: Mike Tyson Recalls Childhood Trauma and Late Mother’s Sex Work in Raw Netflix Docuseries

NEW YORK — Former world heavyweight boxing champion and Hall of Famer Mike Tyson has opened up about his crazy upbringing in 1970s Brooklyn, revealing details about witnessing his late mother's sex work and the insane domestic violence that defined his early home life.

Speaking candidly in the upcoming four part Netflix documentary series TYSON, directed by Floyd Russ, the 60-year-old sporting icon detailed how poverty, crime, and severe abuse shaped his childhood long before he ever set foot inside a boxing ring.

The global streaming release scheduled to premiere on Tuesday, 13th October 2026, combines new sit-down interviews with rare archival footage to trace the fighter's tumultuous journey from juvenile detention to becoming the youngest heavyweight champion in history.

‘I Was in the Bed With Her’

Growing up in the impoverished neighborhood of Brownsville, Brooklyn, Tyson described a household environment where domestic conflict and sex work were daily realities.

During the docuseries, the boxing legend recounted sharing a bed with his late mother, Lorna, while she entertained clients.

"My mother was a sex worker, a prostitute, whatever you call it," Tyson states in the series. "I seen that. I saw it first-hand. I was in the bed with her."

Tyson further detailed how physical violence permeated his home, noting that his mother was regularly subjected to severe physical assault by partners, violence that was subsequently turned on him.

"I’ve seen a lot of vicious fighting... I remember my mother fighting with her boyfriend. I saw him beat her," Tyson recalled. "He knocked her teeth out, then I saw him scald her with some boiling hot water. My mother was very violent. She hit me with anything, extension cord, a liquor bottle, anything."

From Juvenile Detention to Legendary Mentor

By the age of 13, Tyson had already been arrested more than 30 times, leading to his placement at the Tryon School for Boys in upstate New York.

It was during his time in juvenile detention that a reform school guard introduced him to legendary boxing trainer Cus D'Amato, who placed the troubled teenager under his wing and became his legal guardian following Lorna's death from cancer in 1982.

Tyson reflected on his mother's death at the age of 16, with regret that she passed away just as he began realizing his potential as an elite athlete.

"My mother never got to see me fight," Tyson said. "It was just hard, because I was talking to her and the next thing you know—boom, she's dead."

Despite the severe trauma of his formative years, Tyson maintained that processing those painful experiences ultimately provided the resilience required to survive both inside and outside the ring, noting: "Everything that was quote-unquote 'negative' turned out to be a positive for me. I'm very grateful for it all because it made me a better person."

A Twin Netflix Launch

The premiere of TYSON on 13th October serves as the lead-in for a broader programming campaign centered on the boxing icon.

Netflix is set to follow the four-part docuseries with Mike Tyson: Return of the Mike on 3rd November 2026, a comedy special filmed at the Seminole Hard Rock Hotel and Casino in Florida and directed by his wife, Kiki Tyson.