Classic Heavyweight Brawl

[Easy-E]

Man I liked Lennox, but for some reason I was glad whan Rahman knocked his ass out.
You could see he wasnt taking the fight seriously, and was keeping his hands down, grinning and taunting Rahman.
Lennox need a wake up call, and he sure as hell got one.

[Nautilus]

Bert Cooper vs. Michael Moorer

Great. Thanks.

[Exige Jr]

I would love to see how Tyson would have reacted to a Cooper shot. Cooper was a seriously underrated puncher IMO. Holyfield claims he hit harder than Tyson, at least the version of Tyson Holyfield beat the **** out of. I think it's safe to say that Cooper hit harder than anyone Tyson faced up to 1987.

Now Tyson probably takes him down good and hard in the end but Cooper would have brought it to Tyson and I have a feeling he would have landed some hard punches early on. We would have seen just what a prime Tyson really had for a ticker.

Gotta remember that Tyson's defence is very frequently overlooked.

Would Cooper have even hit Tyson that much like you claim? Never underestimate that peek a boo style and awesome head movement he had in the late 80s.

[Kid Achilles]

Tyson was hit by worse fighters. He had great head movement and was many skill levels above his (terrible) opposition on the way up but let's not make him into a defensive master. It's not like he went whole fights without getting tagged by top fighters. Toney Tucker had him wobbled early in their fight, Mitch Green hit him many times, and several journeyman level guys, of whom I can't even remember the names, hit him occasionally. When Tyson got to the top level his invincible defense was merely "very good". Hard to land a punch on him when you throw one at a time but most good fighters who threw combos could sneak some shots in (before getting countered and KO'ed). I think Cooper would as well.

I also think the peekaboo style is very overrated and a tremendous waste of energy for most fighters. Tyson was a fit man but even his punch output dropped in the later rounds of his fights. Peekabo worked for Tyson but it just isn't a viable style for most heavyweights of Tyson's weight, at least not with the intensity that Mike used it. I think a slower paced version that say Chagaev uses is a more realistic adoptation for heavyweights that weigh 220 or over.

IMO Tyson would have been a better fighter if he had an inside game and could stay in there and fight in the trenches, rather than having to work himself in and out over and over.

[titozhang]

very good
great

[The Surgeon]

It's sad really because a hopstep-setup like that is usually too slow to land in a streetfight.

Still Knocked Lennox cold tho!

[TheFairPole]

Anyone on here remember the Witherspoon vs. Mercer fight??? That was another great war. I wish someone would put it up.