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A character named Mike, who was also an African-American boxer, appears in the original Street Fighter, although it is never specified whether they're the same character or not; the name Bison is not mentioned.
The character of Balrog apperas on Street Fighter II. He was originally named M. Bison, with the letter being an initial for "Mike". According to the staff, the character was originally modeled after real-life boxer Mike Tyson. Under the suggestion that the character's name and likeness resembled Tyson to the point of infringement, the developers rotated the names of the boss characters for the English localization.
Thus, the African-American boxer M. Bison became Balrog; the Spanish clawman Balrog became Vega; and the evil mastermind Vega became M. Bison. In Street Fighter Alpha 3, Balrog tells to some of his defeated opponents that he's going to "bite (their) ear off", a reference to Tyson's infamous "Bite Fight" with Evander Holyfield.
His hairstyle consists of short hair cut in an odd pointing style in the front, similar to Mike Tyson's haircuts from the time Street Fighter II was made. In some character illustrations his Japanese name, "Bison", can be seen on the waistband of his trunks, although it's usually removed when these illustrations are published outside Japan. In Street Fighter IV, the waistband now reads "champion".