Julius Francis is open to a second chance twenty-two years after being knocked out by Mike Tyson.

The 57-year-old former pugilist indicated interest in maybe returning to boxing in an interview with TMZ Sports:

“If there is a promoter that’s willing to promote a sanctioned fight, and I never have liked talking about money, but [if] they could come up with a decent offer, then who knows,” Francis added.

Francis, in particular, wants to spar with Tyson, stating: “I’m going to put it out there. I’m going to say, ‘Yes. Yes, we can have a rematch.’ I don’t know if anybody will watch it, but I’m going to say, ‘Yes.’

Francis is back in the spotlight, sixteen years after his final professional bout, owing to a viral video of him knocking someone out with one punch while working security outside Boxpark Wembley in London last month (warning: profanity):

Francis told TMZ Sports that while the good reaction to his individual actions made him feel “vindicated,” the punch cost him his security license.

From 1993 through 2006, the London native competed professionally, with a record of 23-24-1 with 12 knockouts.

Francis pretty much won just two big fights after losing to Tyson in Manchester, England, in 2000, and he went on to lose his next 14 contests.

Tyson, 55, who was largely considered as one of the best heavyweights of all time in his heyday, has not fought professionally since 2005.

Iron Mike had a 50-6 record with two no-contests and won 44 of his fights via knockout.

He held the WBC, WBA, IBF, and The Ring heavyweight belts and won the first 37 matches of his career in overwhelming fashion until succumbing to Buster Douglas in 1990.

Tyson did return to the ring in 2020, taking part in an exhibition battle against fellow boxing veteran Roy Jones Jr. The eight-round fight lasted the distance and was deemed a draw, although many were impressed by Tyson’s performance.

It is unknown whether Francis is a big enough name to convince Tyson to fight again, but with Francis’s one-punch knockout power, it may be an intriguing battle.

Francis’ story about the viral video:

Francis became viral in June 2022 while serving as security at Boxpark Wembley for knocking out a guy who was acting violently to multiple members of the public. The founder and CEO of Boxpark, Roger Wade, was eager to support Julius after it was established that the man had been acting aggressively for up to 15 minutes before Julius attacked him. Other Boxpark employees came to the press in Julius’s defense, complimenting his character.