better puncher - mike tyson or joe louis?

[DarkTerror88]

im going to go and say their equal.

Tyson has much more power and is less...."frugal", in his punching.
But louis was more accurate and was able to string 4 and 5 punch combinations like nobodys business.

Speed seems equal.

Louis was able to keep his power until round 15 but after round 5 tyson slowed considerable.

I still say equal.

[JAB5239]

'Better' is a hard thing to define!

I'd say that Tyson punched a shade quicker in single blows and in combinations and I'd go so far as to say that Tyson punched with more power in both hands.

Louis was scarily accurate though, more so than Tyson.

Its a pretty even toss up really, but if I'm honest I'd be more scared about taking one of Tyson's punches than Louis's. I'd also be more scared about facing the Tyson that met Spinks rather than the Louis who met Schmelling second time round.

I wouldn't want to get hit by either. When Louis hit Schmeling to the body though Max actually screamed out in pain and said he literally lost his vision for a few seconds from that punch. I think that is scarier than just getting knocked unconscious. Jmo.

[them_apples]

Tyson. He's quicker, stronger hits harder. That means he's a better puncher. His accuracy was great too.

In terms of punching Tyson is top tier ATG. Maybe not with other things though. Name one guy who would nail your body to bring your elbows down, then hit you with the same punch up top before you even saw it coming?

Louis was a great puncher when put in comparison to his time. Guys like Baer and Schmeling had **** poor technique compared to Louis. Louis is the the grandad of proper punching technique, I think boxers after him built on top of it though.

[Verstyle]

In my opinion Joe was more precise so I'm going with Joe.

[CarlosG815]

In my opinion Joe was more precise so I'm going with Joe.

I think people are over rating Joe's accuracy in comparison to Tyson.

Could it be that his combination's, power and hand speed over shadow his accuracy, so they just automatically give the accuracy to Joe?

I admit later in his career, post prison, he wasn't as accurate, he threw a lot of haymakers wildy from the outside, but at his peak, Tyson was spot on accurate and had incredible speed.

Tyson is the greatest puncher in heavyweight history.

I'm not saying Louis was a pushover, but the speed, the power and the accuracy of Tyson's punches are unmatched. That was his greatest attribute and what made him famous.

[Scott9945]

Since they were different types of KO punchers, I wouldn't argue with either choice. To be honest, I still can't decide. But I am convinced that George Foreman was the hardest puncher to ever step into a boxing ring. Too bad he didn't have Tyson's snap or Louis' perfect timing as well.

[them_apples]

Since they were different types of KO punchers, I wouldn't argue with either choice. To be honest, I still can't decide. But I am convinced that George Foreman was the hardest puncher to ever step into a boxing ring. Too bad he didn't have Tyson's snap or Louis' perfect timing as well.

If anyone had good timing it was Muhammad Ali. He was head hunting against Joe Frazier and still managed to make it a close fight.

George Foreman also had incredible timing that nobody gives him credit for.

When it comes down to it. Tyson has TOP notch timing as well. top 5 for a HW. Tysons weaknesses definently don't stem in the offense department. In fact the only real thing Tyson lacked in this area was his inside game and perhaps his late round workrate (which wasn't bad but rather lack luster compared to his first 5).

Tyson really only falls short in the mental department. He would break down if something didn't go his way. It takes a certain fighter to do that though. Rocky had an iron will but i don't see him being able to **** with Tyson let alone hurt him.

[Sugarj]

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I wouldn't want to get hit by either. When Louis hit Schmeling to the body though Max actually screamed out in pain and said he literally lost his vision for a few seconds from that punch. I think that is scarier than just getting knocked unconscious. Jmo.

Yes I remember hearing about that. I think that was the result of a body blow that caused a degree of spinal trauma for poor Max because he half turned away when Louis was pummelling him on the ropes. I think he had to stay in hospital to have his back looked at.

As powerful as Louis was I believe that injury was more to do with the punch landing in a dubious area behind the kidney (Max's fault of course for not remaining square on).

Mike Tyson might have broken Schmelling's back with that punch!

[SBleeder]

If anyone had good timing it was Muhammad Ali. He was head hunting against Joe Frazier and still managed to make it a close fight.

George Foreman also had incredible timing that nobody gives him credit for.

When it comes down to it. Tyson has TOP notch timing as well. top 5 for a HW. Tysons weaknesses definently don't stem in the offense department. In fact the only real thing Tyson lacked in this area was his inside game and perhaps his late round workrate (which wasn't bad but rather lack luster compared to his first 5).

Tyson really only falls short in the mental department. He would break down if something didn't go his way. It takes a certain fighter to do that though. Rocky had an iron will but i don't see him being able to **** with Tyson let alone hurt him.

Prime Tyson had far more weaknesses than simply mental weakness (which certainly was the case). It's a topic for another thread, but he was far from a complete fighter.

[Sugarj]

Prime Tyson had far more weaknesses than simply mental weakness (which certainly was the case). It's a topic for another thread, but he was far from a complete fighter.

To be honest ThemApples did touch on Tyson's late round workrate issue and lack of infighting.

I'll be damned if I can think of any other weaknesses in prime Tyson precluding him from being a 'complete fighter'. Unless you want to judge him on his lack of height and reach....which he actually dealt with very well.