Lewis vs. prime Tyson... who would have won?

[Deeznuts]

I'd say lewis by decision. Douglas fought Tyson in his prime and KO'd him so I think lewis would keep him in check with that jab and overhand right.

[La_Vibora]

Well, the Larry Holmes question is another issue, but the Mike Tyson one is one that this thread is trying to solve... if we just take it as read that it's Mike Tyson then it kind of defeats the purpose of having the poll at all, doesn't it?

I understand your point, I was just responding to that person's statement. LEts just pretend thse Tyson part isn't there since we are debating that here, but no way is LL better than Larry Holmes, Larry has a much much more impressive resume, and was better than Lewis at just about every aspect of their boxing skills.

[La_Vibora]

I'd say lewis by decision. Douglas fought Tyson in his prime and KO'd him so I think lewis would keep him in check with that jab and overhand right.

Tyson was obviously unfocused at that point, I mean for christ sake, the guy was floored by Greg Page of all people in a sparring session during his "training" for Douglas. Even then, he had Douglas down in round 9 for 9 seconds during a slow referee count, which also proves that prime Tyson is dangerous for all 12 rounds, not the first 4 or 5 only like people like to make it seem.

[Guest]

I understand your point, I was just responding to that person's statement. LEts just pretend thse Tyson part isn't there since we are debating that here, but no way is LL better than Larry Holmes, Larry has a much much more impressive resume, and was better than Lewis at just about every aspect of their boxing skills.

I'd have to put my hand up on that one and shamefully confess that I've only seen two LH fights.

[La_Vibora]

I'd have to put my hand up on that one and shamefully confess that I've only seen two LH fights.

Definitely check out some of Larry's fights if you want a lesson on the sweet science. Imo, I can't think of a heavyweight in the history of boxing who had a better jab than Larry, I think he, Ali, and Liston are in a class of their own in this regard. One of the best Holmes' fights I ever saw was hisfight against Ken Norton definitely watch it when you get a chance. Just check this out:

[GasPed]

First of all, Ruddock was certainly damaged goods by the time Lewis got him, I mean this guy had a broken jaw against Tyson, but kept coming. After that, I never saw Ruddock able to handle that kind of punishment again.

That's ridiculous. Typical revisionist stuff - changing history to match your opinion. Leading up to the Lewis fight, Ruddock had just come off two impressive KO wins over Greg Page (who himself would beat Bonecrusher Smith for the WBA belt 3 months later) and the undefeated Phil Jackson, and was easily the betting favorite over Lewis. Nobody was talking about him being "shot" or "damaged goods"; everyone thought he would take out the unproven Lewis, and it was just a matter of when.

But it was Lewis who took Ruddock out in 2. Frankly, Ruddock looked fine and plenty sharp until he got hit by that famous clubbing right hand of Lewis at the end of round 1. But he didn't lose because his chin was damaged or his skills were gone; he lost because Lewis landed his honey punch, and anyone who got hit with that punch would probably have gone down.

Ruddock went on to have 12 more fights after that, and only once was he ever down again - against the power punching Tommy Morrison who landed one of the best left hooks of all time on him. So don't go claiming that Ruddock was shot after Tyson or that his chin was gone. He looked great after Tyson - right up until 2:50 of Round 1 against Lewis...

[PATO 1]

la vibora is just embarrasing himself with statements hes making

lewis had a weak resume, that weak resume was better than tysons

[KingDosia]

This question has lingered many a boxing convorsation. I will maintain that the Tyson who posessed some of the best body punches and fastest hands we've ever seen had the equipment and I will say style to wreck Lenox, However if his head wasn't right, well Buster Douglas will tell you what would have happened.

[K-DOGG]

I agree with most of it...BUT...
I dont see why people think Lewis was overconfident against McCall. McCall had stopped his last five opponents before Lewis and in that fight and Lewis simply got KO'd in the 2nd.
Im not sure why people talk about the McCall and Rahman losses as if they were the same fight.
Agaisnt Rahman Lewis was obviously lazy and not in good shape, but agaisnt McCall that wasnt the case.
But anyway, thats a different matter.

I finally saw the Mercer fight last night and Lewis didnt seem to know how to tie Mercer up. Mercer threw some good combinations at him yet Lewis chose to cover up and try and bob and weave instead of clinching. Against the devastating fast combinations of Tyson, targeting both the head and body with hooks and uppercuts, IMO Lewis would have been stopped.
And at range Lewis didnt land his jab with any intent, so i dont think it was Mercer who stopped him from fighting at range.
Also Lewis seemed very uncomfortable with the pressure Mercer applied.
Basically, im not sure wen Lewis was in his prime.
Either side of Golota he fought Briggs and Akimwande, who both hurt him. Wen he was younger he was faster and lighter, but less experienced.
Im not sure wen his prime was.
I also thought against Briggs he ran out of gas. Not sure if he could handle a young Tyson.

Bobby, first off, I do essentially agree with you on the McCall fight. I do think that Lennox was looking past McCall a bit; but feel the reason he got caught had more to do with Correa's instructions. Also, it is important to note that it was a bit of an early stoppage. I think, more than likely, Oliver would have finished him off because there was still 2:30 left in the round; but it's only fair to Lewis to mention that, even thought wobbly, he was on his feet when the figth was stopped.

Secondly, concerning the Mercer fight, I think Lewis fought Ray's fight by design more than anything else. He was fighting in Madison Square Garden in front of a New York crowd and his "toughness" had been questioned because of the McCall fight and the way he didn't exchange with Morrison. I really believe that Lennox wanted to show he had what it took to brawl with a respected brawler....and also be the first person to knock Ray Mercer out. The plan nearly backfired because it was a close fight; but I think that he fought that way by design, stepping out of his element to show "the warrior within" or whatever. Lennox didn't look particularly impressive in that bout because he's not a naturally aggressive fighter....he's a counter=puncher; but he showed heart and grit, which is what I think he was trying to get across to the critics.

Least, that's my take.

[K-DOGG]

That's ridiculous. Typical revisionist stuff - changing history to match your opinion. Leading up to the Lewis fight, Ruddock had just come off two impressive KO wins over Greg Page (who himself would beat Bonecrusher Smith for the WBA belt 3 months later) and the undefeated Phil Jackson, and was easily the betting favorite over Lewis. Nobody was talking about him being "shot" or "damaged goods"; everyone thought he would take out the unproven Lewis, and it was just a matter of when.

But it was Lewis who took Ruddock out in 2. Frankly, Ruddock looked fine and plenty sharp until he got hit by that famous clubbing right hand of Lewis at the end of round 1. But he didn't lose because his chin was damaged or his skills were gone; he lost because Lewis landed his honey punch, and anyone who got hit with that punch would probably have gone down.

Ruddock went on to have 12 more fights after that, and only once was he ever down again - against the power punching Tommy Morrison who landed one of the best left hooks of all time on him. So don't go claiming that Ruddock was shot after Tyson or that his chin was gone. He looked great after Tyson - right up until 2:50 of Round 1 against Lewis...

Uh, hate to rain on your parade, sunshine; but Greg Page was a former WBA champ when Ruddock beat him....and he'd beaten Gerrie Coetzee for that belt back in 1984, if I'm not mistaken.....or did I completely misread your post?