Mike Tyson's Past Could Knock Him Out of Getting a Visa to Visit New Zealand

Mike Tyson, the former “Baddest Man on the Planet,” was looking to take his one-man show on the road for a speaking engagement in New Zealand in November, but it appears as though his sordid past is coming back to haunt him. 

According to various news media outlets including the New Zealand Herald, Tyson participated in a video press conference with the New Zealand media to address those issues. 

Tyson was convicted of the rape of beauty pageant contestant Desiree Washington in 1992. The former heavyweight champion was sentenced to six years in prison and was released after just three years for good behavior. 

New Zealand law prohibits anyone sentenced to five years or more in prison from being granted a visa to enter the country. 

Tyson, though, doesn’t seem to be too heartbroken over the matter. In the recent video press conference, Tyson was quoted as saying the following: 

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''I'm not going to sit here and cower and beg to come to your country,'' Tyson said. ''I'm sorry, but if I can't come, I can't come. It will be my misfortune but I don't want to feel like I'm on trial to come to your country." 

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Max Markson, an Australian publicist, told the press, “He's a great ambassador and he really does have a tremendous story to tell to the people of New Zealand. It would be a tragedy if the show that he's been doing on Broadway for the last few weeks can't be told." 

Tyson’s career has been on an upswing as of late. He has had movie roles, a television series and he recently starred in his own one-man Broadway show. His Broadway show was directed by the highly-acclaimed Spike Lee and was a hit at the box office, though it hasn't received much praise from critics.