My father hates Mike Tyson and says hes all washed up. I admit he is out of his prime and that is why he retired. This happens to everyone in Martial arts or any sport. Ken Shamrock, Randy the "Natural", Michael Jordan. I do not believe Mike Tyson was the greatest role model and did political activist stuff like Muhammed Ali but its not about that. Its about who has proven themself the most. Mike Tyson dominated boxing in a way no one ever has. Even if he ended his career badly look at his record and how many of them were knockouts.

He's my favorite boxer of all time but his career lasted about 5 years. From his first fight until he lost to Buster Douglas. After that he was never the same.

All Tyson proved was he could look good against mediocre competition.

Ali actually fought in the best era for HW and he was the best in it
Tyson doesnt even make the top ten list of all time HW's on most boxing writers list
Tysons most impressive win was his 90 second KO of Micheal Spinks, Ali beat guys like Foreman, Liston and Frazier who are all fighters that rank above Tyson

My father hates Mike Tyson and says hes all washed up. I admit he is out of his prime and that is why he retired. This happens to everyone in Martial arts or any sport. Ken Shamrock, Randy the "Natural", Michael Jordan. I do not believe Mike Tyson was the greatest role model and did political activist stuff like Muhammed Ali but its not about that. Its about who has proven themself the most. Mike Tyson dominated boxing in a way no one ever has. Even if he ended his career badly look at his record and how many of them were knockouts.

Look at who he fought. And look what happened when he fought better fighters. Holyfield, Lewis, Bowe, Roddick etc..... would not have had a problem with Trevor Berbick, Bonecrusher Smith, T. Tubbs etc.........

the guy was ferocious in his day, boxing is about heart and when it came down to it he didnt have none. ali was the best without doubt. tyson could have been the best but he was weak mentally. a bullys menrality.

Karp, I think your fishing for an argument, i don't believe you actually think thoses things

mmm dun think so

Look at who he fought. And look what happened when he fought better fighters. Holyfield, Lewis, Bowe, Roddick etc..... would not have had a problem with Trevor Berbick, Bonecrusher Smith, T. Tubbs etc.........

Tyson never fought Bowe... who's Roddick??
Tyson was way past it when he fought Lewis as Ali was when he fought Berbick,so I can't really hold that against him.
Mikes first reign was awesome,he destroyed all comers in a fashion that attracted a whole new audience to boxing,that along with being the youngest HW champ in history secures his place in history.
Was he the calibre of champion Ali was??..No,but then again no-one was.
I think the only HWs who may have beaten a prime Tyson were Ali,Liston & Foreman.

good fighters who were tall and could box had a chance at Tyson,
Bonecrusher and Green both drew up the blueprints on how to beat Mike
Im not a Tyson hater at all, in fact I loved watching him fight but he wasnt in the same caliber as Ali or Foreman

pleanty of good arguments.

I love tyson but he is lucky to crack top 10.

ali>>>>>>>>>>>>>>tyson, even in tysons prime

Tyson never fought Bowe... who's Roddick??
Tyson was way past it when he fought Lewis as Ali was when he fought Berbick,so I can't really hold that against him.
Mikes first reign was awesome,he destroyed all comers in a fashion that attracted a whole new audience to boxing,that along with being the youngest HW champ in history secures his place in history.
Was he the calibre of champion Ali was??..No,but then again no-one was.
I think the only HWs who may have beaten a prime Tyson were Ali,Liston & Foreman.

I was not saying he fought Bowe, I was saying Bowe and Lewis etc... would have looked just as great fighting Berbick, Bonecrusher etc...Razor Roddick or Ruddick, not sure of the spelling, he fought Tyson twice, lost both 1st one by KO ( early stop IMO) 2nd one by Dec. he also got destroyed by Lewis at the end of his career. But early on in his career he had some good skills.

Mike was the man...

He's the best at interviews.
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Tyson is the greatest knock out artist of all time, but far from the best HW boxer. He's about 8th on my list of all time greats. He's not even the best boxer of his era.

i love watching tyson, he;s a walking train wreck and always fuckin exciting

Mike Tyson was really fun to watch for 4-6 rounds, he was just an animal and his knockout of Holmes was all too priceless(as an Ali fan it was great) But quite honestly for those who recall, Larry Holmes said it best in the prefight press conference, Mike Tyson will self distruct, just as he did in and outside the ring. All Time Great? No, just another great talent, who fell short of unfare expectations.

I think Tyson is either overrated or underrated, very few see him for what he actually was IMO.

Tyson at his best was a great fighter. He destroyed Spinks and Larry Holmes. Holmes was out of his prime but still a great fighter and not an easy guy to beat. Tyson was one of the greatest HW punchers of all time, maybe the best. Who else in the HW division hit with his combination of power AND speed? I think Tyson at his best would be a tough fight for any HW boxer who ever lived. I have to laugh at so called experts who say things like "Jack Dempsey and Rocky Marciano were better punchers and would have knocked Tyson out." Ah common. I love both of those guys but neither could hit like Tyson.

Ali would have destroyed him. He would have made what Holyfield did to him in their first fight seem like a birthday party at McDonald's.

Yeah, Tyson was good.. But best? Please, I bet if you ask most boxing historians he won't even be on their top 15-20.

Yeah, Tyson was good.. But best? Please, I bet if you ask most boxing historians he won't even be on their top 15-20.

I personally can't think of 15 HWs Id rate above Tyson,it'd be a stretch to do so IMO.He hasn't achieved as much as Ali,Louis or Holmes,but he did have 10 title defenses & was the true undisputed world champ.He is the youngest HW champ ever,he did regain the title for a 2nd time after the layoff.So despite his later career downfall he actually achieved quite a bit,& in very impressive fashion.

I think he definatly was a wrecking ball. It don't matter what most boxing historians say IMO, no one knows for sure how prime Tyson would have stacked up against the greatest fighters who ever fought so its all speculation and nothing more. I respect boxing historians or anyone with an advanced knowledge of boxing, but their word isn't law. If boxing historians knew 100% who would win between old fighters, surely they would know 100% who would win in todays fights and make millions betting on boxing.

The only guys who I STRONGLY feel would whoop Tyson are prime Ali and prime Larry Holmes, but with a guy as explosive and strong as Tyson nothing is for sure. I don't think Ali would do the same to Tyson as Holyfield because Evander and Ali are two different fighters with two completely different styles and assets.

I think he definatly was a wrecking ball. It don't matter what most boxing historians say IMO, no one knows for sure how prime Tyson would have stacked up against the greatest fighters who ever fought so its all speculation and nothing more. I respect boxing historians or anyone with an advanced knowledge of boxing, but their word isn't law. If boxing historians knew 100% who would win between old fighters, surely they would know 100% who would win in todays fights and make millions betting on boxing.

The only guys who I STRONGLY feel would whoop Tyson are prime Ali and prime Larry Holmes, but with a guy as explosive and strong as Tyson nothing is for sure. I don't think Ali would do the same to Tyson as Holyfield because Evander and Ali are two different fighters with two completely different styles and assets.

Tru dat.I also believe that a prime Sonny Liston would have give Mike a real hard time.

for someone trying to troll this thread turned out pretty good, im glad I didnt move it now, you all make good points
Tyson's problem was that he let people hold him, he came in like a killer but if he got clinched he just stood there waiting for the break, a good boxer like Ali would have done that all night till Tyson had nothing left
I doubt he would have been able to hit Ali and even if he did manage to Ali had one of the best chins in history, I dont see Tyson being able to land enough and sure as hell wouldnt win a Decision

So the man was past his prime at 23 years old? Please

i don't like it how you guys say all he fought was useless boxers and nobody's those guys train as well its like saying if you aren't the champion then your a nobody he fought guys who were got put up against him plus when he was 19 he could knock anyone in the world out

And he was 23 and getting knocked out by bums the likes of Buster Douglas. Tyson won fights on intimidation. Once someone stood up to him and backed him up, he wanted to quit. To be considered great, you have to have a strong mind as well as a strong body. Tyson's mind wasnt strong. Tyson couldnt overcome certain situations. He was/is a scared child trapped in a man's body.

I'm sorry but the people saying tyson would not crack the top ten seem to have not seen his tenacity in the ring let alone his great technique when he was good. Many sports enthusiasts i have seen on tv rank him anywhere from 3 - 7th. In this corner on tsn ranked him 3rd and even though some of he had some of the greater knockouts of the late 80's and early 90's there still seems to be an untapped potential, almost a vitor belfor-isk, that surrounds him. But this is just an opinion and until someone comes around and slashes all the record books there will always be a debate aound the greatest of all time

He is not in the top ten or top 20. I dont care what boxing historians say. He had no heart and his prime lasted 3 years. He was past his prime at 23. I also think his chin is overrated. Everything he lost, he lost to KO. b

Top 20? cmon lets be reasonable or please name 19 guys more fitting to be ahead of him, and his chin isnt that bad. Granted his last couple of losses were bad but not top 20?

Ali's the best get over it. I like how the thread says "Tyson is actually the best"
and theres no facts or anything, its just all opinions.

Top of my head not necessarily in order...I'd say Ali, Louis, Dempsey, Jack Johnson, Marciano, LaMotta, Foreman, Frazier, Holyfield, Holmes and Liston all probably rank higher.

well.... seeing as lamotta was a middleweight I think Id rank Tyson above him

I'm sorry but the people saying tyson would not crack the top ten seem to have not seen his tenacity in the ring let alone his great technique when he was good. Many sports enthusiasts i have seen on tv rank him anywhere from 3 - 7th. In this corner on tsn ranked him 3rd and even though some of he had some of the greater knockouts of the late 80's and early 90's there still seems to be an untapped potential, almost a vitor belfor-isk, that surrounds him. But this is just an opinion and until someone comes around and slashes all the record books there will always be a debate aound the greatest of all time

Ive never in my entire life seen anyone rank Tyson anywhere near top seven, let alone top ten even
Ive seen absolutely every Tyson fight so you scant say I havent seen anything Tyson had to offer
truth is, Tyson isnt top ten, I dont know what sports enthusiasts you were watching but they dont know boxing thats FOR SURE
maybe top twenty

tyson was a brawler.