Prime Tyson could have been the best ever??

[Mike Tyson77]

All in all I think it would have made for a terrific fight.

Poet

no dought..

[taws6]

I think that if tyson trained with rooney for the douglas fight it would have gone the limit, and tyson would have probably snuck out a win. Still not sure though cause douglas fought that fight the way ali would have fought tyson so im not 100 percent sure

[ahmet55]

I agree if tyson had been with Kevin Rooney the outcome of the tyson vs douglas fight would have been different. The odds were against douglas 42 to 1 and tyson hadnt been fighting the same since he had left kevin rooney. His trainer Aaron Snowell at the time of the douglas fight had mentioned tyson would lose after watching him sparr. There were rumors that tyson wasnt prepared or had trained enough for the fight and his corner was lacking skills and equipment. By the fourth round tyson had a swelling in the right eye, his corner had filled a latex glove with icy water to cover his eye. 23 days before the fight buster douglases mother had passed away, if somebody shouldnt have been prepared for the fight it shouldve been douglas.

[Verstyle]

So could Frazier. You beat that by having a good jab. There just weren't quality jabbers in the division at the time Tyson was in his prime. Holmes made Tyson look foolish with his jab, but at 38 and over-the-hill he couldn't keep it up for more than a few seconds. In his prime Holmes could throw that jab all night long. The next time Tyson saw a jab like that was against Douglas. At lot of people put his vulnerability in that fight to the fact that he wasn't bobbing and weaving. Watch the first two rounds though, Tyson TRIED to bob and weave and Douglas wouldn't let him. Douglas would hammer Tyson with the jab everytime he tried to bob and weave and after a couple of rounds of that he gave it up. That's when Douglas started hitting him with lead rights.

Poet

The Douglas fight I thought in my opinion,was Tyson doing really well.He was bobbing and weaving trying to get in.He even threw some jabs in the mix to get in also.He also threw combos. When learning more of the peek a boo style,ironically I look at this fight for good tips on how to move.He did a damn good job at it versus Douglas.

[Poet682006]

The Douglas fight I thought in my opinion,was Tyson doing really well.He was bobbing and weaving trying to get in.He even threw some jabs in the mix to get in also.He also threw combos. When learning more of the peek a boo style,ironically I look at this fight for good tips on how to move.He did a damn good job at it versus Douglas.

He was certainly TRYING for the first couple of rounds but Douglas wasn't lettining him. Douglas was doing EXACTLY what you're supposed to do with a bobber and weaver: Using the jab to make him pay for it, and eventually stop doing it so you can bring other weapons into the mix. Douglas fought that fight the way I always envisioned a prime Larry Holmes fighting Tyson.

Give credit to Tyson too. He stopped bobbing and weaving because of the jab. That's just smart IMO. If something isn't working or your opponent is stopping you from doing it, YOU STOP DOING IT! You try something else! Tyson did that, give him credit for having the ring smarts to see that something wasn't working and changing his tactics. Again, Douglas fought the fight of his life that night and would have been tough for anyone to beat. Witness Douglas' switch to lead rights after Tyson stopped bobbing and weaving. He wasn't letting ANYTHING Tyson did keep him from dictating the fight.

PS. A word on the tactic of bobbing and weaving. I see people write all the time: "Tyson slid when he stopped bobbing and weaving" or "If only Tyson b&w like he used to he'd be unstoppable" ect. ect. ect. Bobbing and weaving is just a tactic, among many other boxing tactics. It's not a panacea for Tyson or anybody else. Like every other boxing tactic there's a tactic that beats it. Every tactic is effective against at least one other tactic; every tactic has a counter-tactic that beats it. It's part of what boxing is: Move, counter-move. It goes on in the ring all the time: Fighters constantly adjust to the tactics their opponents are using. The fighter that makes the smartest adjustments has a big edge working for him in the fight.
Hell, it's one of the things that keeps boxing interesting.

Poet

[Verstyle]

He was certainly TRYING for the first couple of rounds but Douglas wasn't lettining him. Douglas was doing EXACTLY what you're supposed to do with a bobber and weaver: Using the jab to make him pay for it, and eventually stop doing it so you can bring other weapons into the mix. Douglas fought that fight the way I always envisioned a prime Larry Holmes fighting Tyson.

Give credit to Tyson too. He stopped bobbing and weaving because of the jab. That's just smart IMO. If something isn't working or your opponent is stopping you from doing it, YOU STOP DOING IT! You try something else! Tyson did that, give him credit for having the ring smarts to see that something wasn't working and changing his tactics. Again, Douglas fought the fight of his life that night and would have been tough for anyone to beat. Witness Douglas' switch to lead rights after Tyson stopped bobbing and weaving. He wasn't letting ANYTHING Tyson did keep him from dictating the fight.

PS. A word on the tactic of bobbing and weaving. I see people write all the time: "Tyson slid when he stopped bobbing and weaving" or "If only Tyson b&w like he used to he'd be unstoppable" ect. ect. ect. Bobbing and weaving is just a tactic, among many other boxing tactics. It's not a panacea for Tyson or anybody else. Like every other boxing tactic there's a tactic that beats it. Every tactic is effective against at least one other tactic; every tactic has a counter-tactic that beats it. It's part of what boxing is: Move, counter-move. It goes on in the ring all the time: Fighters constantly adjust to the tactics their opponents are using. The fighter that makes the smartest adjustments has a big edge working for him in the fight.
Hell, it's one of the things that keeps boxing interesting.

Poet

Tyson did have fights in which he didnt bob and weave alot,for example the Biggs fight and Holmes.I dont feel like thinking too hard,so thats good enough. He had other tactics he used,there are different style of Tyson in different fights. I watch him so much daily that I see this. Ive seen at least 5 different forms of Tyson. All in the 85-88 range. The patient aggression is the best one. He used it best against Holmes and Biggs as Ive stated.He would explode in,throw his combos and get out or tie up.

I myself bob and weave alot. I havnt had anyone counter it yet,but when I do get that person I always have different plans to change up.

[Poet682006]

Tyson did have fights in which he didnt bob and weave alot,for example the Biggs fight and Holmes.I dont feel like thinking too hard,so thats good enough. He had other tactics he used,there are different style of Tyson in different fights. I watch him so much daily that I see this. Ive seen at least 5 different forms of Tyson. All in the 85-88 range. The patient aggression is the best one. He used it best against Holmes and Biggs as Ive stated.He would explode in,throw his combos and get out or tie up.

I myself bob and weave alot. I havnt had anyone counter it yet,but when I do get that person I always have different plans to change up.

Truth is Versi the average poster is no where near as sophisticated a fight analyst as you are. You use that knowledge yourself to box. Me, I've just been watching boxing for 35 years and have a lot of experience. I've seen what you're talking about with the Holmes fight and IMO I believe Tyson went into that fight NOT planning on bobbing and weaving for fear of Holmes' jab. As it turned out he needn't have worried because at Holmes' age he couldn't sustain his jab. Interestingly enough, from everything I've read, the Holmes fight was the one Tyson worried about the most. Cus had always told Mike that there was always a chance that a great fighter in the twilight of his career might pull out one last great performance.

Poet

[Verstyle]

Truth is Versi the average poster is no where near as sophisticated a fight analyst as you are. You use that knowledge yourself to box. Me, I've just been watching boxing for 35 years and have a lot of experience. I've seen what you're talking about with the Holmes fight and IMO I believe Tyson went into that fight NOT planning on bobbing and weaving for fear of Holmes' jab. As it turned out he needn't have worried because at Holmes' age he couldn't sustain his jab. Interestingly enough, from everything I've read, the Holmes fight was the one Tyson worried about the most. Cus had always told Mike that there was always a chance that a great fighter in the twilight of his career might pull out one last great performance.

Poet

Im sure he was alittle worried and pissed. Holmes pissed him off before the fight.haha.Not a good thing to do. The forms that Tyson had.I had wished he was more versatile to switch them up if one wasnt working. Heres a few different styles from fights he had in the 80. Tyson vs. Scaff(more loose,waits outside for a counter,see more of this vs.Richardson),Boyd(tons of lateral movement,tons of foot movement),Biggs(explosive coming in,then getting out),Green(bobbing and weaving the whole time(Frazier like),Ribalta(body punching artist),Spinks(right at you with hands by temple,short compact hit combos in the pocket). All different style of Tyson.

[Poet682006]

Im sure he was alittle worried and pissed. Holmes pissed him off before the fight.haha.Not a good thing to do. The forms that Tyson had.I had wished he was more versatile to switch them up if one wasnt working. Heres a few different styles from fights he had in the 80. Tyson vs. Scaff(more loose,waits outside for a counter,see more of this vs.Richardson),Boyd(tons of lateral movement,tons of foot movement),Biggs(explosive coming in,then getting out),Green(bobbing and weaving the whole time(Frazier like),Ribalta(body punching artist),Spinks(right at you with hands by temple,short compact hit combos in the pocket). All different style of Tyson.

He should have worked the body a LOT more consistantly than he did. Too much headhunting. He had the perfect body-type to be an awesome body puncher (like Frazier) but just couldn't resist the urge to headhunt.

Poet

[Verstyle]

He should have worked the body a LOT more consistantly than he did. Too much headhunting. He had the perfect body-type to be an awesome body puncher (like Frazier) but just couldn't resist the urge to headhunt.

Poet

Tyson wanted it over quickly.I think Im more of a bodypuncher myself. My hooks to the body has to be close to twice as hard then my hooks upstairs. Plus hitting down stairs could distract the person,because he's more worried about the body.Then its your time to aim for the head.