25 years ago today: Douglas stuns Tyson

[smashup]

Remember this like it was yesterday and it was easily one if not the biggest upset in Boxing History and a crazy start time of about 10am if i remember right.

No One saw this coming....

Wednesday is the 25th anniversary of Buster Douglas’ 10th-round knockout of Mike Tyson, regarded as among the biggest upsets in sports history.

ESPN Stats & Information takes a look at the fight.

The build-up
With a 37-0 record (33 victories by knockout), “Iron” Mike Tyson had by 1990 become the lineal heavyweight champion of the world. His Feb. 11, 1990, fight against James “Buster” Douglas in the Tokyo Dome was widely regarded as a tuneup for a fight against former cruiserweight champion and 1984 Olympic bronze medalist Evander Holyfield.

Tyson won his first title in 1986, defeating WBC champion Trevor Berbick inside of two rounds to become the youngest heavyweight champion in history. By 1988, Tyson won all the heavyweight titles when he defeated lineal champion Michael Spinks by first-round knockout

Douglas, ranked seventh among heavyweights by THE RING magazine, was on a six-fight win streak heading into the bout with Tyson. Douglas had fought for the heavyweight title one time, losing an IBF title fight against Tony Tucker in 1987. Many sports books did not post betting odds on Tyson-Douglas, but the Mirage in Las Vegas had Douglas as a 42-1 underdog on the night of the fight.

The fight
The television broadcast showed a graphic that Tyson had won 17 of his 37 fights in the first round. Douglas had knocked out five opponents in the first round over his 34-fight career.

Douglas exploited his 12-inch reach advantage against the smaller Tyson. According to CompuBox, Douglas outlanded Tyson 230-101 in the fight (128 jabs, 102 power). In the eighth round, Tyson sent the challenger to the mat with an uppercut. Douglas got to his feet at a count of nine.

At the start of Round 10, two judges were split while the third had a draw. About a minute into the round, Douglas used his jab again to set up a right uppercut. The punch stunned Tyson and was followed up by a four-punch combination that sent the champion to the mat. As referee Octavio Meyran began to count, Tyson went to put his mouthpiece back in but could get only one side in. Tyson was counted out at 1:23 of Round 10. Douglas became the undisputed heavyweight champion of the world.

The numbers
Total punch numbers
Douglas Tyson
Landed 230 101
Attempted 441 214
Pct landed 52% 47%

According to CompuBox, which tracked the fight live, Douglas was the aggressor in every round in terms of output and connectivity. He landed more punches than Tyson in all three categories (total, jabs, power). Armed with a 12-inch reach advantage, Douglas was the more active fighter, throwing 198 power punches to Tyson's 138 and 243 jabs to Tyson's 76.

The aftermath
Almost immediately after the fight, Tyson promoter Don King filed a protest, stating the referee had given a long count after Douglas was knocked down in Round 8. Whereas the IBF immediately recognized Douglas as champion, the WBA and WBC initially agreed with King and did not recognize Douglas as champion. The protest was withdrawn, and Douglas was recognized as the lineal heavyweight champion, meaning he, not Tyson, would face Evander Holyfield.

Douglas weighed in at 246 pounds for the Holyfield fight in October 1990, the heaviest he had weighed for a fight. Douglas lost the title in a third-round knockout and retired from the ring until 1996. Douglas was 8-1 after his return but retired for good in 1999 with a record of 38 wins, 6 losses and 1 draw.

Tyson fought four more times in 1990 and 1991 before being sentenced to prison in 1992. Paroled in 1995, he returned to the ring and faced Holyfield in 1996 for Tyson’s WBA heavyweight Title. Tyson lost the first matchup, and in the rematch he lost by disqualification when he bit Holyfield’s right ear.

Tyson had one more shot at the heavyweight title in 2002 when he faced lineal champion Lennox Lewis. Tyson lost by eighth-round TKO, signaling the end of his career as an elite heavyweight. Tyson retired in 2006 with a record of 50 wins, 6 losses and 2 draws. He was inducted into the International Boxing Hall of Fame in 2011

[Master]

That was not the intense prime Tyson that destroyed Berbick, Spinks and Tucker. That was a Tyson that had STD, management issues, women problems and a god complex at the time.

[Dark Lord Al]

That was not the intense prime Tyson that destroyed Berbick, Spinks and Tucker. That was a Tyson that had STD, management issues, women problems and a god complex at the time.

Mental deficiencies are all part of a fighters makeup , no different than a physical one.
Fact is Tyson lost fair and square to a better fighter on the night. Tyson never tried for a rematch did he ?

[brocktonblockbust]

good points Al. Yeah youd think Mikey Mike would get revenge against the Buster, try to eat his children in a rematch or something.

[Master]

Tyson wanted an immediate rematch, did you not see the press conference after the fight?

Buster was offered more money by Duva and Holyfield which he took after he paid out King.

Tyson was going to fight Buster 2000ish but got knocked out in one round.

[chris6878]

Tyson wanted an immediate rematch, did you not see the press conference after the fight?

Buster was offered more money by Duva and Holyfield which he took after he paid out King.

Tyson was going to fight Buster 2000ish but got knocked out in one round.

buster showed his tru colors......we know who the winner is in the long run

[Beanflicker]

The Buster Douglas situation always makes me laugh. Talk about your blown opportunities in boxing.

Here's a guy, SOLID solid boxer, very skilled, but somewhat of an underachiever and relative unknown. He gets the shot of a life time vs Tyson and says, "you know what? This is my big chance against the biggest star in HW boxing since Muhammad Ali. I'm gonna get in the best shape of my career, I'm gonna fight the bastard and I'm gonna win." Sure enough, he does just that, knocks out the most feared man in boxing history to that point, and pulls off the biggest upset ever. It's mainstream news, everybody now knows his name, everyone wants to talk to him... he's a star overnight. And hey look, he has another big money super fight lined up right after with a rising superstar, Evander Holyfield.

Instead of, you know, repeating what brought you so much success and training hard, he comes in 15-20lbs heavier against Holyfield and gets KTFO throwing a telegraphed uppercut from the outside. Jesus Christ

[Master]

The Buster Douglas situation always makes me laugh. Talk about your blown opportunities in boxing.

Here's a guy, SOLID solid boxer, very skilled, but somewhat of an underachiever and relative unknown. He gets the shot of a life time vs Tyson and says, "you know what? This is my big chance against the biggest star in HW boxing since Muhammad Ali. I'm gonna get in the best shape of my career, I'm gonna fight the bastard and I'm gonna win." Sure enough, he does just that, knocks out the most feared man in boxing history to that point, and pulls off the biggest upset ever. It's mainstream news, everybody now knows his name, everyone wants to talk to him... he's a star overnight. And hey look, he has another big money super fight lined up right after with a rising superstar, Evander Holyfield.

Instead of, you know, repeating what brought you so much success and training hard, he comes in 15-20lbs heavier against Holyfield and gets KTFO throwing a telegraphed uppercut from the outside. Jesus Christ

I bet Tyson was kicking himself because he would have destroyed that version of Douglas and regain his title.

[Master]

This is an excellent listen.

BBC - Radio 5 live 5 live Sport - 5 live Boxing, 19/02/2015

[KickMuck]

I'm not sure this one was a win. No contest in my opinion. Simply for not obeying the ref.

[Otley]

I'm not sure this one was a win. No contest in my opinion. Simply for not obeying the ref.

That should have been a dq......probably the 4th or 5th time Tyson should have been kicked out


Job Biscuit (ok)!!!!


eh eh!!!

[Master]

That would have been Wlad.