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Boxing legend Mike Tyson was one of the first major athletes to celebrate President Donald Trump’s executive order addressing cannabis reform on Thursday.
Trump’s order reclassified marijuana as a less dangerous drug, which would have eased restrictions to make it easier to buy and sell and pave the way for more research into marijuana’s medical benefits.
Marijuana was previously classified as a Schedule I drug under the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA), the same category that the agency uses for heroin, ecstasy and LSD.
Under new Classification of Schedule IIIMarijuana is now in the same category as drugs like Tylenol that contain codeine and anabolic steroids that the agency says have “moderate to low potential for physical and psychological dependence.”
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Tyson suggested the change would help employment numbers by allowing existing jobs to be counted.
“Thank you [President Trump] of reprogramming cannabis. This decision shows listening to the people across the country and takes a practical step to implement outdated policies. It supports American workers, families and businesses, and allows more than 500,000 existing jobs to finally be accounted for,” Tyson wrote in X.
Tyson added that he hopes more steps will be taken to grant leniency to some people who have been convicted of non-violent marijuana use in the past.
“Clemency and federal legalization are important next steps. Americans across the political spectrum agree that no one should remain incarcerated for non-violent marijuana offenses,” Tyson wrote.
Tyson, 59, told Fox News Digital in an exclusive interview on June 30 that whether he will fight again will depend on the organization’s marijuana redistricting.
“It depends on whether or not cannabis is legalized and then reregulated,” Tyson said.
Tyson said he agreed to his last fight against YouTuber Jake Paul while under the influence of marijuana and would not have agreed to the fight if he had not been drinking.
MIKE TYSON THANKS BACK FOR ASSETS OF HIS MARIJUZATION ORGANIZATION
Mike Tyson, left, slaps Jake Paul as they face off during a weigh-in at The Pavilion at the Toyota Music Factory Nov. 14, 2024, in Irving, Texas. (Christian Petersen/Getty Images)
“I really don’t believe it. No, I wouldn’t do that,” Tyson said when asked about the fight. “Because, without marijuana, I get too into my emotions. With marijuana, I’m very serious.”
He added that “it won’t take much” [cannabis] to agree to another battle, before lifting depends on rearranging the plant.
Tyson led a coalition of current and former athletes, including Kevin Durant, Dez Bryant and Antonio Brown, who signed a letter to the White House in late June, demanding marijuana reform. The letter called for the reclassification of marijuana from Schedule I to Schedule III, leniency for “non-violent” offenses and an end to “discriminatory banking practices” related to financial regulations in the cannabis industry.
Tyson told Fox News Digital in a June 30 interview that restructuring was the “most important” goal of his book. He added that he was “disappointed” with the way former presidents Barack Obama and Joe Biden handled marijuana reform, but hoped that Trump would take a new approach.
“It was a disappointment,” Tyson said of the Obama and Biden administrations. “We have a different president now, so we’re talking to him. So, it seems a lot different to talk to President Trump than the other guys.”
Tyson has a long-standing friendship with Trump that dates back to the 1980s during the early years of Tyson’s boxing career and Trump’s rise as a celebrity New York City real estate developer.
Still, Tyson said he wouldn’t invite Trump to use marijuana with him.
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Donald Trump and Mike Tyson attend the March of Dimes dinner in November 1989 in New York City. (Sonia Moskowitz/Getty Images)
“Not really. No, he doesn’t smoke. He doesn’t believe in anything that can improve your brain’s abilities. And I respect that,” Tyson said.
A recent study by UC San Francisco researchers have determined that eating edible marijuana, such as gummies, has the same cardiovascular risk as smoking marijuana for long-term users. The risk stems from reduced blood vessel function, according to the study, published in JAMA Cardiology May 28.
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