Tyson Fury: Where's he rank in terms of the greats in boxing?
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I'd say he is top-10. I don't see him cracking the top-5.
Muhammed Ali, Larry Holmes, George Foreman, Lennox Lewis, Mike Tyson, Joe Louis, and the undefeated Rocky Marciano are all above Fury in the ranks.
Muhammed Ali, Larry Holmes, George Foreman, Lennox Lewis, Mike Tyson, Joe Louis, and the undefeated Rocky Marciano are all above Fury in the ranks.
Tough question- because is best the most skilled or is it who would win in a head2head? Iron Mike was an animal, but at 5-10, 220 - is he really beating 6'9, 270 (w/skill)? IDK
There you go! There you go! Every time we start talking about boxing a white man gotta pull Rocky Marciano out they ***. He's your one.
Like many, I'm a big Mike Tyson fan. I know he was a different fighter after prison and his fights against Lennox Lewis sucked *** because Lewis' was so much taller and his reach was so long so he would just jab Mike and if Mike got close which he needed to inflict damage, Lewis would just tie him up. It made the fights pretty boring.
Fury would have beat the brakes off of Tyson. Even during his 86-90 run. Too big and too smart in the ring.
There was a reason his people avoided Lewis, Holyfield, Forman and Bowe when he mattered. Hell they wouldn’t even risk a Tommy Morrison or Ray Mercer fight then.
Tyson is one of my favorite fighters ever and one of the most over rated athletes in history. He can be both.
Doctors Ironfist and Steelhammer send their regards.
Doesn't have anything at all to do with being white? The overwhelming majority of the great heavyweight boxers are African American. But go ahead and play the race card if you want to. How ridiculous.
Pretty sure that was a joke from a movie
The current Heavyweight boxing era is weak so it's hard to put anyone who dominates the division anywhere near the Top 10 of all time. It's Fiery and Wilder. That is it. Joshua flamed out and really fought nobodies as well. That said, Fiery would have done well in previous eras because of his size, chin and smarts in the ring. Top 10? Tough call
As for Tyson, he would have fought anyone when he had Rooney and Jim Jacobs on his team. When Jacobs died and he allowed Don King into his life that was when it all changed. He stopped training hard, did not fight as often as he should and had all of the well known personal issues. It was at that time when his camp started getting very selective on who he fought and they knew after the Douglas fight he was a shell of his former self. Keep in mind he was fighting Holyfield if he had beat Douglas and it's safe to say he would have lost that fight. I remember watching the Douglas fight live and said that even if he won he is losing to Holyfield soon. You could just tell his skills had diminished greatly in a short period of time.
As for Tyson, he would have fought anyone when he had Rooney and Jim Jacobs on his team. When Jacobs died and he allowed Don King into his life that was when it all changed. He stopped training hard, did not fight as often as he should and had all of the well known personal issues. It was at that time when his camp started getting very selective on who he fought and they knew after the Douglas fight he was a shell of his former self. Keep in mind he was fighting Holyfield if he had beat Douglas and it's safe to say he would have lost that fight. I remember watching the Douglas fight live and said that even if he won he is losing to Holyfield soon. You could just tell his skills had diminished greatly in a short period of time.
It seems like you're not sure.
Let me tell you something once and for all -- Rocky Marciano was good, but compared to Joe Louis, Rocky Marciano ain't ****.
I grew up watching Tyson. He was the most powerfully ferocious bastard I’ve ever seen for about 3 years. Once 1990 rolled around, he looked like a different athlete. He was overconfident and not as sharpe athletically.
I think fury is too large for Tyson, although, early Tyson would give anyone trouble.
early Tyson whips Holyfield and anyone else under 6’5
I think fury is too large for Tyson, although, early Tyson would give anyone trouble.
early Tyson whips Holyfield and anyone else under 6’5
Yup it went waaaaayyyyyyyy over it.
Joe Louis was 76 years old!
Marciano was a great fighter for his particular time. Major problem with him revolved around lack of competition while he fought during his prime. Joe Louis and Jersey Joe Walcott fought Marciano somewhat past their prime. Ezzard Charles was his toughest opponent, fighting above his weight class. The September 17, 1954 fight (Charles vs Marciano II) is considered one of the greatest comebacks in boxing history. Ref nearly stopped the bout because Marciano was bleeding excessively. Rocky said "eff this", ignored his corner and knocked Charles' *** out.
You gotta say Fury is in his prime right now. So with that said, how would he do against other heavies in their prime? In my opinion he loses to every one of the following in their prime.
Tyson
Louis
Ali
Frazier
Foreman
Holmes
Holyfield
Lewis
V Klitscho
W Klitscho
Would probably throw in Marciano, Norton, Liston, Bowe, Shavers.
Would probably also say Fury would not be a heavy favorite against the following:
Wilder-Fury stays down 2 more seconds and he never gets two more fights, Joshua, Baer, Moore, Liston.
Lots of others from different eras you could consider as well.
I would still call him top 20-30 all time, but not top 10.
Tyson
Louis
Ali
Frazier
Foreman
Holmes
Holyfield
Lewis
V Klitscho
W Klitscho
Would probably throw in Marciano, Norton, Liston, Bowe, Shavers.
Would probably also say Fury would not be a heavy favorite against the following:
Wilder-Fury stays down 2 more seconds and he never gets two more fights, Joshua, Baer, Moore, Liston.
Lots of others from different eras you could consider as well.
I would still call him top 20-30 all time, but not top 10.
Would agree with that, but I would include Ali as an exception. Dude was hard to hit and could take a LOT of hits.
That’s what I hear from all true boxing guys. They all say Ali would have murdered Tyson. I would need to see that to believe it. Tyson was unbeatable in his early 20s. That said, I’m not sure he ever fought a great fighter during that great run
Correct, when Rooney was Tysons trainer no one who ever fought including Ali or Rocky could have withstood his punch.
Ali said the fight was won or lost in the gym and out on the road long before he danced under the lights. The work ethic of the young Ali was far better than anyone else. I don't recall exact details, but I've read books comparing his training regimen to other top fighters. Ali out worked people by a large margin.
Ali withstood both Frazier and Foreman’s punches while in their primes. Obviously the long term effects were devastating but at the time he could take a beating and still win because of his incredible conditioning and overall skills. Reason I always felt Tyson at his best could not beat Ali unless he caught him perfectly with his best punch. Ali would have worn him down while taking the punishment and jabbed him to oblivion taking it to decision. Tyson at his best was just a different animal. Rock hard chin and well conditioned. I doubt anyone in all eras beats him other than by decision.
Fury is at the top in an era where heavy weight boxing is a joke. Buster Douglass would eat his lunch
Lotta truth here. King ruined Tyspn for good. In his prime I still say Tyson was a match for anyone. He was just an unstoppable force in the ring.
That said I still put Ali at the top of the pile.
The first time I saw Fury get in the ring I was like, who in hell is this fat *** out of shape guy. Then I watched him fight and found out I enjoyed watching boxing again. The dude fights smart and has some heavy, heavy, hands. I know many other people underestimated him and paid for it with a lost bet. I would say he is right outside the top five. Six maybe.
There were 2 Ali's. The young Ali was practically unhittable. He used to say if he ever got hit twice in the same fight, he'd know it was time to retire. He was known to taunt people with things like, "You are getting tired and the worst place in the world to be tired is in the ring with me." After the forced exile he was a different fighter. He built his own training camp in the mountains of Pa (Deer Lake if I recall). It was state of the art, but he wanted a remote place where he wouldn't be tempted to slack on training. When it opened, he gave reporters a tour. Every so often along the paths was a boulder with the name of a heavyweight champion on it. At the end of the tour, a reporter said he didn't see Ali's name on any of the boulders, Ali answered, "This whole mountain is mine."
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Probably the most overlooked fighters ever. Everyone was watching the lightweights De La Hoya and Mayweather while these 2 we're dominating.Doctors Ironfist and Steelhammer send their regards.
I'm not used to good boxers looking like Fury. You're used to seeing abs.
This is still one of the coolest things I've ever seen in combat sports.
Great post and question. Really tough to say because of his competition and his true uniqueness. Incredible level of skill for a man that size. For 270 his head movement and feet are mind-blowing.
I think he's probably top 10 maybe top 7. Just so hard to compare because I don't know there's been anyone of his size and skill set.
Either way I'm a huge fan because of his life story. Not sure there was ever anyone who's pinnacle sporting moment of coming back from the dead was such a metaphor for his life in general
I think he's probably top 10 maybe top 7. Just so hard to compare because I don't know there's been anyone of his size and skill set.
Either way I'm a huge fan because of his life story. Not sure there was ever anyone who's pinnacle sporting moment of coming back from the dead was such a metaphor for his life in general
Ali had the quickest jab I have ever seen in the heavyweight level, and was tall.
Tyson had an amazing run of knock outs. Watch them . . . there is a YouTube video for them.
Fighters instinctively lowered their heads, forward, for protection, sending their faces directly toward Tyson's uppercut . . . someone told the much taller Holyfield/Buster not to do so, and to jab, jab, jab, and clinch.
A classic story about Ali is that he asked to spar the heavyweight champ soon after his Olympic victory, Johann Johannson, and that Ali never threw a punch, and never got hit in the face.This is still one of the coolest things I've ever seen in combat sports.
I like Fury a lot. I think he's a good personality and seems like he's actually a pretty decent dude. I do think he benefits from being in an era where good heavyweights are few and far between. I think Lennox Lewis is the best "big man" fighter. I think he would probably beat Fury or Wilder. Michael Grant was a big man that I always thought was underrated. I think in today's age, Grant would be one of the big stars. Times do change with boxing but unlike basketball and football, I don't think the stars of yesteryear would be at as big of a disadvantage in today's game.