For those who appreciate the ring achievements of Mike Tyson

Recently did this Q&A with Iron Mike Tyson's old trainer Kevin Rooney. Thought I'd share this and start a discussion about probably the last great American heavyweight phenomenon Iron Mike Tyson who was seemingly unbeatable from 1986-1988. Rooney discusses his strategy for Tyson vs. a prime Ali and other things....

http://thebiofile.com/2011/08/talkin-mike-tyson-with-kevin-rooney/

 

You should have asked Rooney if Tyson punched as hard as Alexis Arguello who knocked his out with as pretty a straight right as I ever saw.

To me, Tyson was never the same fighter after he left Rooney. When he was at his best with Rooney he would string hard punches together like no heavyweight since Louis. But to think that a prime Tyson could have beaten a prime Holmes - let alone Ali at his best - is laughable.

I always thought Tyson's best fight was against Biggs, who, unlike Spinks, was a legit heavyweight and - as crazy as it seems now - was looked at as the Ali to his Frazier. Tyson was unreal against Biggs, he just destroyed him, Spinks was never going to be any match.

 

Tyson wasn't mentally strong enough to deal with Ali who would have been inside his head long before the first bell rang. He would have made fun of everything from his voice to his shoes and been outmatched mentally and physically from the opening bell.

Let's not forget that Tyson was certainly quick enough to get inside on big guys like Tony Tucker and Bonecrusher Smith and do nothing more than throw a punch or two and then be content to hang on and waltz his way to a decision. If he punched his way in (and he had a terrific, underused jab) then he could make life difficult for anyone, but he didn't do much of that, certainly after he became champ.

 

I should also make the point that Tyson was too short to excel in staredowns.

 

That's gotta be latter-day Tyson when he was fighting stiffs. Maybe I'm imagining it but didn't he always stare at the canvas during staredowns in his prime?

 

Before their infamous clash in June 1988 in Atlantic City, a man named Muhammad Ali actually predicted Michael Spinks was going to beat Mike Tyson. The betting odds were quite even if I remember correctly.

 

Yes that's with Peter McNeely in 95 or 96, which was when Tyson was already a shell of a shell of his former self.

 

You could have stopped right here. No way Tyson would've put Ali to sleep, and no way Tyson would've survived a 12 or 15-round fight with Ali.

 

Ali, as great as he was, was not able to overcome or handle the pressure Joe Frazier put on him. And the increase in heat the prime Tyson could put on Ali might have, with all due respect, knocked The Greatest out.

 

That's funny, I could have sworn that Ali was able to "handle the pressure" enough to win two of the three fights against Frazier.

 

Frazier was not the same fighter after the first Ali win and the KO loss to Foreman IMO.