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At his very best Tyson was the best and most destructive boxer of the era. Tyson at his best would have despatched Joshua, wilder and even perhaps fury. Only fighter to knock out his first 19 opponents. Between 19 and about 22 years old he was invincible. Perfect boxing machine particularly against fighters at least 6 inches taller. He got inside their guard and his uppercut and hook combinations were even more devastating than wilder’s right hand. And they were not just single punches but blistering combinations. At his best his straight jab measured a connection speed of 30 miles per hour, roughly the same as Bruce Lee’s straight short punch. .
Tyson was lucky he came along when he did, against nobody's. He couldn't have won against Ali/Frazier/Foreman. The first time someone hit him, Buster Douglas, he caved. These guys would have pummeled him
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George Foreman V Mike Tyson on 17:12 - Dec 11 with 5220 views
George Foreman V Mike Tyson on 16:02 - Dec 11 by strikerace
Tyson was lucky he came along when he did, against nobody's. He couldn't have won against Ali/Frazier/Foreman. The first time someone hit him, Buster Douglas, he caved. These guys would have pummeled him
Hmmm. He beat Frazier, Spinks, Berbick, Smith, Williams and Ruddock. Remind me which one of those was a nobody? All KO'd before he was 25.
He lost his mother 3 weeks before the Douglas fight and had been encouraged to cancel it. He also decked Douglas in the 8th and Douglas recovered after an 8 count that was later calculated at over 12 seconds. Plus, to be fair, Douglas caught him fair and square two rounds later. Was he mentally prepared for the fight, no.
Of course he lost 3+ years for the rape conviction. He was no saint but 5 years after his release Desiree Washington went on record saying that she may have misremembered the events. If he had not been stupid to entangle himself who knows what he would have gone on to achieve in the ring.
Frazier was beaten by him. Could he have beaten Ali? Impossible to know. At 19-20 if he'd caught Ali he may well have put him down. Foreman, again who knows. Foreman was a massive puncher but Tyson was the master of the uppercut so if he had got inside Foreman perhaps he would have put him down as well. Remember Tyson was 5 foot 11 so conceded a good 5-8 inches in height in most bouts. However, technically, particularly in his earlier years he closed every corner of a ring. There was nowhere to hide or keep away from him. If he got inside he'd usually break at least one rib. His body punching close hand was sublime. His jab was much harder than anyone predicted for a shorter fighter and when asked both Spinks and Frazier said they'd never been hit as hard by anyone so often, or had ribs broken.
George Foreman V Mike Tyson on 17:12 - Dec 11 by bosh67
Hmmm. He beat Frazier, Spinks, Berbick, Smith, Williams and Ruddock. Remind me which one of those was a nobody? All KO'd before he was 25.
He lost his mother 3 weeks before the Douglas fight and had been encouraged to cancel it. He also decked Douglas in the 8th and Douglas recovered after an 8 count that was later calculated at over 12 seconds. Plus, to be fair, Douglas caught him fair and square two rounds later. Was he mentally prepared for the fight, no.
Of course he lost 3+ years for the rape conviction. He was no saint but 5 years after his release Desiree Washington went on record saying that she may have misremembered the events. If he had not been stupid to entangle himself who knows what he would have gone on to achieve in the ring.
Frazier was beaten by him. Could he have beaten Ali? Impossible to know. At 19-20 if he'd caught Ali he may well have put him down. Foreman, again who knows. Foreman was a massive puncher but Tyson was the master of the uppercut so if he had got inside Foreman perhaps he would have put him down as well. Remember Tyson was 5 foot 11 so conceded a good 5-8 inches in height in most bouts. However, technically, particularly in his earlier years he closed every corner of a ring. There was nowhere to hide or keep away from him. If he got inside he'd usually break at least one rib. His body punching close hand was sublime. His jab was much harder than anyone predicted for a shorter fighter and when asked both Spinks and Frazier said they'd never been hit as hard by anyone so often, or had ribs broken.
Technically Tyson at his best could take anyone.
Bosh, the Frazier he beat was Marvis, Joe's son, not the great man himself who would have been 42 when he was starting out.
Now when you talk about beating a Frazier then George Foreman absolutely destroyed Joe Frazier in 1973 to win the world title(s) putting him on the canvas six times in two rounds before the referee saved him from further punishment.
This was Joe Frazier's first pro defeat and think I'm right in saying that up to this point he had never been on the floor. George Foreman at that time was a truly terrifying prospect to face, probably the most fearsome there'd been since Sonny Liston.
George Foreman V Mike Tyson on 17:28 - Dec 11 by CamberleyR
Bosh, the Frazier he beat was Marvis, Joe's son, not the great man himself who would have been 42 when he was starting out.
Now when you talk about beating a Frazier then George Foreman absolutely destroyed Joe Frazier in 1973 to win the world title(s) putting him on the canvas six times in two rounds before the referee saved him from further punishment.
This was Joe Frazier's first pro defeat and think I'm right in saying that up to this point he had never been on the floor. George Foreman at that time was a truly terrifying prospect to face, probably the most fearsome there'd been since Sonny Liston.
[Post edited 11 Dec 2019 17:40]
Foreman then went onto destroy Ken Norton who would have been a champion for years in pretty much any other era.
Early 70's Foreman has to be the scariest heavyweight ever given who he beat and how convincingly he did it.
Shame he was never the same after Ali beat him, but the Ron Lyle fight that came after is as good as Hagler v Hearns
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George Foreman V Mike Tyson on 22:46 - Dec 11 with 5148 views
If they were all in the prime condition and all at the peak of their powers.
Foreman.... Would have dealt with Tyson like he did with Joe Frazier. Both of their styles suited him perfectly.
Tyson. Would have destroyed Joe Frazier in his prime, along with Ken Norton, and Larry Holmes in his prime ( i know he beat him when he was past his peak)
Cassius Clay/ Muhammed Ali. Would have beaten any of them in his prime. That's some shout, considering he was banned from boxing for 3 and a half years, when he was in his prime.
Best Heavyweights ever? 1:.........Clay/Ali 2:.........Jack Johnson
Hardest hitting heavyweight ever? Earnie Shavers.
Best pound for pound Boxer/Fighter ever? Sugar Ray Robinson
What's going on?
We should be told
Sort it out
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George Foreman V Mike Tyson on 23:15 - Dec 11 with 5127 views
What no one has mentioned yet was just how good Tyson's movement was at his peak which provided a great defense, his head and upper body movement meant he rarely got hit . He perfected the Cus D'Amato peek-A-boo style. Then you had his hand speed combined with such immense power. More often it was his second or third punch that would finish a fight with his opponent not even seeing where the punch came from. As much as I loved Ali and for all his talent, I think a peek Tyson could match him for speed and would undoubtedly have the power advantage. As for Foreman, I think Ali destroyed the myth because despite all that power, he was very slow. Finally the Buster Douglas fight, Tyson proved he could take a hell of a beating before being stopped. Tyson by this time was already his own worst enemy, marriage break up, Don King, sacking Rooney and having his mates train him and be in his corner (they were so unprepared that they had to use a condom filled with cold water instead of an endswell when he had a massive lump over his eye) and finally believing his own hype that he was unbeatable
You might be able to guess from the above, I was a massive Tyson fan
George Foreman V Mike Tyson on 11:26 - Dec 10 by bosh67
At his very best Tyson was the best and most destructive boxer of the era. Tyson at his best would have despatched Joshua, wilder and even perhaps fury. Only fighter to knock out his first 19 opponents. Between 19 and about 22 years old he was invincible. Perfect boxing machine particularly against fighters at least 6 inches taller. He got inside their guard and his uppercut and hook combinations were even more devastating than wilder’s right hand. And they were not just single punches but blistering combinations. At his best his straight jab measured a connection speed of 30 miles per hour, roughly the same as Bruce Lee’s straight short punch. .
Tyson was awesome.
Small, though. Foreman was a proverbial mountain of a man. Iron Mike was running through people in his day, but they were never of the stature of George Foreman at his peak. So for me, that'd be an interesting fight.