How good was a 'prime' tyson?

[Dark Lord Al]

Tyson had great power and speed , but as time when on it showed he didnt have the stomach for fights when the other guy fought back.
No way a prime Tyson beats Ali or Foreman ( primes ).

[:::PSL:::]

I just watch "the best of Tyson" volume 1 & 2 the other night on ESPN.

He was pretty fvckin agreesive fighter. It's like.. Tyson is the pitbull in the ring, and his opponents are french poodles.

[GAME]

Tyson in his prime looked amazing. I think he could possibly beat any fighter on his best day but it cant be proven cuz he never fought a big name in his prime. Round about the Bruno fight in 89 he began slwoing down through all the money and distractions he had, then after Douglas he was ruined so we never saw how he'd do against a great fighter

My guess is if Tyson met an ATG when he was at his best he'd stand a pretty good chance.

[BIG H]

Tyson had great power and speed , but as time when on it showed he didnt have the stomach for fights when the other guy fought back.
No way a prime Tyson beats Ali or Foreman ( primes ).

You can't say none of his first 27 opponents fought back! He was just so good that their attempts to fight back were blown away.

[El Kabong]

I think Tyson was great in his prime but I doubt he could beat any of the top ten all-time heavyweights just on a heart standpoint. Tyson had great skill but anytime someone stood their ground he had trouble.


I would have LOVED to see Tyson fight Bowe, Rahman, Briggs, Mercer, and Morrison

[BIG H]

I think Tyson was great in his prime but I doubt he could beat any of the top ten all-time heavyweights just on a heart standpoint. Tyson had great skill but anytime someone stood their ground he had trouble.


I would have LOVED to see Tyson fight Bowe, Rahman, Briggs, Mercer, and Morrison

He would've detroyed all of them, except perhaps Bowe imo

[El Kabong]

Actually I think at the time which was obviously post prison ( 1992-1999 ) all of those guys would have been very difficult for Tyson to beat.

Riddick Bowe had the perfect style to beat Tyson...big guy, didn't take any shit, and had big power.

Rahman I would compare to Frank Bruno, he wasn't as good as Bruno but he had the same length and power and Tyson would have more trouble because he would have been older and Frank rocked him a time or two. Tyson would win but it would be interesting.

Briggs was big, strong, and had quick hands in his prime...I think it would have been close until Tyson landed a perfect counter punch to KO Briggs.

Mercer was just tough and gutsy. A better boxer than Oliver McCall but perhaps with a chin that's about the same level.

Morrison had big power and he could box a little it would have been a brawl.


Also Tyson vs the Michael Moorer who beat Holyfield would have been a good fight too and with the back story of Teddy Atlas training Moorer....wow what a fight that would have been

[BIG H]

Actually I think at the time which was obviously post prison ( 1992-1999 ) all of those guys would have been very difficult for Tyson to beat.

I was talking about prime for prime. Very hard to say what would have happened post prison. Probably pre 96 I would still have backed him against all OF those except Bowe.

[brucelee]

I agree Big H. Tyson would have blown them into pieces. hehehe.


No matter what people say, Tyson would have beaten anybody had he concentrated on his boxing career not his jail career.

I suggest that before somebody posts something about how great or not great a fighter is he should at least watch 10 of his fights. Remember that Tyson was the youngest Heavyweight champ. That was a great accomplishment already.

I am a Tyson fan because I have seen his fights when he was knocking people out. I am of the belief that was his prime period. After unifying the heavyweight titles, Tyson lost his mind and was never the same. He was not in his prime when he fought Douglas. In fact, Douglas fought an already very troubled Tyson.

[Lance Uppercut]

Tyson was the youngest Heavyweight champ. That was a great accomplishment already.

I wonder what Michael Spinks thinks about this.

After all, he was still the heavyweight champion when tyson beat berbick for an alphabet title, and Spinks would go on to successfully defend the real/linear Heavyweight Championship against Jerry Cooney 7 months after Tyson picked up the alphabet trinket from Berbick.

[DaxxKahn]

Tyson may have fought in a weak era but a Tyson at his best had

1. Speed and combination punching that is perhapes one of the top 5 of any HW

2. His conditioning was fantastic and his power was unquestionable

3. His jaw was fantastic....Just look at shots he ate from Ruddock

4. He had a support team that at the time Tyson believed anything they said was the word of GOD so as long as they encouraged him his mindset was that of a champion

To question if Tyson was really that good is almost pointless....No One questioned how good Michael Spinks really was as a HW until Tyson sparked him...At the time no one thought Tony Tucker was ordinary until Tyson beat him, Trevor Berbick though had 3 or 4 losses at the time Tyson beat him was a feared puncher, Frank Bruno who is still thought of as a highly skilled fighter in his day with his only downfall being a soft chin was starched early both times when he fought Tyson...Other then a loss early in his career Bruno only lost to the elite of his era...and all murderous punchers.....

Skill wise Tyson was as good as any HW in history....If his mind was not fragile he coiuld have been a top 3 ATG....

If Tyson would or would not have beaten Bowe, Holyfield, etc if he stayed on course? I am not going to specualte that....There are many peolole out there that have asked the question

"If Tyson kept on the way he was and had not ended up leaving the Catskill camp then ending up in prison would guys like Bowe, Holyfield, Mercer etc have been such big names in the 1990's or Tyson opponents?"

Not a crazy question IMO

[brucelee]

Tyson was the youngest Heavyweight champ. That was a great accomplishment already.

I wonder what Michael Spinks thinks about this.

After all, he was still the heavyweight champion when tyson beat berbick for an alphabet title, and Spinks would go on to successfully defend the real/linear Heavyweight Championship against Jerry Cooney 7 months after Tyson picked up the alphabet trinket from Berbick.

Spinks would be thinking that he doesn't deserve that linear Championship after her was knocked down early and EASILY by Tyson.IMO

During that time, people were actually saying that Tyson would be like fighting Ali coz Spinks was still undefeated at that time. Many have been saying that Spinks would surely beat Tyson only to be viciously proven wrong.

By the way, Berbick was not a champion for nothing. He had been knocking people also and he was in no way an easy opponent for most heavyweights during that time. Tyson, again, disposed him easily.

[Gandalf]

I think Tyson was great in his prime but I doubt he could beat any of the top ten all-time heavyweights just on a heart standpoint. Tyson had great skill but anytime someone stood their ground he had trouble.


I would have LOVED to see Tyson fight Bowe, Rahman, Briggs, Mercer, and Morrison

He would've detroyed all of them, except perhaps Bowe imo

And even Bowe may have had his hands full. Tyson at his best was nasty.

[El Kabong]

And even Bowe may have had his hands full. Tyson at his best was nasty.

Are you kidding me Riddick Bowe had ALL the tools to beat Tyson prime or post jail.

Bowe was bigger, he was mentally tough, he has never been KO'd, he RARELY if ever got hurt (I never saw anyone other than Holyfield or Lewis in the amateurs do it).

Bowe was better than the Douglas that beat Tyson in 1990...he was MUCH better

[Kel]

A prime, focused and confident Tyson had the ability to beat anyone ever IMO

It was only when his foot speed went that he struggled againsed bigger guys, he could get on the inside quicker than a taller heavy could throw a jab for fucks sake.