Heavyweight unification series

[1] Prior to the series, the last undisputed heavyweight champion had been Leon Spinks, who won the championship in his 1978 victory over Muhammad Ali.

[2][3] Spinks was stripped of his WBC title later that year because he opted to fight a rematch against Ali instead of a mandatory challenger; the heavyweight championship had been fragmented ever since.

The idea of the series originated in October 1985, when Don King visited HBO Sports president Seth Abraham to propose a WBC title fight between Pinklon Thomas and Trevor Berbick.

[6] The organizers were hopeful that Mike Tyson, then a young, fresh face, would qualify for the tournament and generate excitement for what was otherwise seen by some analysts as an unappealing slate of fighters.

[7][8] Michael Spinks had been stripped of his IBF title in the middle of the tournament because he had accepted a lucrative offer to fight Gerry Cooney, instead of facing his mandatory challenger, Tony Tucker.