The Myth everyone rated Tyson as an ATG HW after Spinks fight (Video evidence inside)

[generalbulldog]

My dad and his friends didn't say that about Tyson and they were hardcore fans, because they felt it was way too early. And other boxing experts also felt that way.

Mate, given your dad argued that Haye would be the first white lineal HW champ of the world since Braddock, his opinion probably won't hold too much weight here.

Was any of your dad's friends a leading boxing pundit of the day? Otherwise it might be hard to sell them as boxing experts.

All my piss-taking aside, I do agree to a point, I think there is an idea that just because some people thought he might be the best in 1988, does not mean that we have to unilaterally accept that is how it was. Imo fighters should never be placed historically while still active. Otherwise you get opinions like that Kellerman article about RJJ being the best fighter ever, which in truth now looks pretty silly.

However, this works both ways. Writing someone who is active off as being the greatest can also look foolish. I remember reading an article by the great Nat Fleischer from around the time that Ali was banned from boxing. In it he argued that to consider Ali among the ten greatest HWs of all time was a ludicrous concept not even worth thinking about & how he couldn't even compare to the greats of a previous era.

Generally people always go too far one way or the other. The middle ground is where the truth is. Wow that could read like something Andre would say. I'm a sage.

* One last thing, H, you are very wrong about the excitement. All due respect to Tyson who might be the most exciting fighter to watch of all time, but he had nothing like the cultural impact of Jack Johnson, Jack Dempsey, Joe Louis or Ali. You could make a strong argument that Marciano had a greater impact. Tyson was big, but not as big as those guys were in their time.

Thinking about it, I think the proper analogy would be like after Lebron James in the first 3 rounds of this year's NBA playoffs (before the NBA Finals) played so spectacularly that some people were saying that Lebron was as good and maybe even better than Michael Jordan or somewhere in that vicinity, but yet the people that followed the NBA for many years and hardcore fans said, hold up let's wait a little while before making such proclamations, because you have a generation of fans that saw Jordan played when he was in his prime or followed his career for a large part of it. Same thing with Tyson. When Tyson beat a whole bunch of top ranked HWs at the time and dismantle Spinks some people were proclaiming that Tyson was up there with a guy like Ali or even better, but yet fans that followed the sport for years and did see Ali for a huge chunk of his career, whether in his prime or the 70s would disagree or say it was too premature. Tyson and Lebron had these other worldly physical abilities but just lack that extra gear that the 2 greatest of their sports had. And coincidently it was mental toughness for both, imo.

[Mr140]

Tyson is a atg but is by far the most overrated heavyweight to ever grace the planet. I mean if i had to make list i have to put Ali, Foreman, Louis, Holyfeild and Lennox above the man. Anyhow is this another fucking how great was Tyson really thread again, is this because marble made the legacy thread. The one talking about how Holyfeild is tarnishing his rep because he is fighting in his late 40's. I mean we have been over this a lot and its he same people with the same shit to say and that includes me as well because i sure as shit have not changed my mind about it at all lol.