Mike Tyson rarely does anything quietly, and his latest admission is no exception. The former heavyweight champion says he personally hand-delivered a letter from Sean “Diddy” Combs to President Donald Trump. It was a request for clemency that puts Tyson squarely in the middle of one of the more unusual celebrity favors in recent memory.
Tyson made the revelation during an appearance on SiriusXM, where he spoke about his relationship with Combs. The two have long been friendly, and Tyson referred to the rapper throughout the conversation by his nickname, “Puff.”
Cohen pressed Tyson on whether he had been caught off guard by the case brought against Combs and the allegations that accompanied it. Tyson said the surprise for him was not the case itself, but how far prosecutors went to build it.
“Listen, I was surprised that they went through so many lengths to get him,” Tyson said. “They used a 110-year-old rule to get him, that case 110 years ago, but they used it to get him. Can you imagine that?”
That law is the Mann Act, a federal statute dating back to 1910 that was originally written to address transportation of individuals across state lines. Combs was convicted on two counts under the act related to transportation. Notably, he was acquitted of the more serious racketeering and trafficking charges that had anchored the prosecution’s two-month trial.
Prosecutors had argued Combs ran an enterprise built around coercion and so-called “freak off” parties, some of which involved travel across state or international lines. Combs has denied any misconduct and is pursuing an appeal of his conviction.
According to Tyson, his involvement went beyond commentary from the sidelines. He said he spoke with Combs while the rapper was behind bars, and that Combs asked him to pass along a message to Trump directly.
When Cohen asked point blank whether Tyson had actually delivered a letter to the president on Combs’ behalf, Tyson did not dodge the question.
“I did what he told me to do, yeah,” Tyson said.
That letter lines up with something Trump himself has already confirmed. Back in January, the president acknowledged he had received a pardon request from Combs, and he made clear at the time that he had no intention of granting it.
Trump and Combs were not always at odds. In an August 2025 interview with Newsmax, Trump reflected on a friendlier chapter in their history, describing Combs as someone he once got along with easily.
“I was very friendly with him. I got along with him great,” Trump said. “He seemed like a nice guy.”
Trump said that the relationship soured once he entered the political arena. “I didn’t know him well, but when I ran for office he was very hostile,” he said.
Whatever goodwill once existed between them clearly was not enough to move Trump off his position. For now, Combs remains at FCI Fort Dix in New Jersey, serving a 50-month sentence. His case is far from fully resolved outside the prison walls either, as he continues to face more than 70 civil lawsuits tied to the broader allegations against him.
Combs’ timeline behind bars has also shifted. His projected release date moved from January 21, 2028, to March 2, 2028, after accusations surfaced that he had violated prison conduct rules. He reportedly directed other inmates to cook and clean for him and give him massages, along with claims that he gained access to a cellphone.
