Poll: Muhammad Ali vs Mike Tyson, both in their prime.

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Who would win?

  • Ali

  • Tyson


Results are only viewable after voting.

Newell Steamer

Diamond Member
Jan 27, 2014
6,894
8
0
Tyson - the man is a bundle of nature, wrapped in muscles and hopped up on rage - while in his prime.

And, he totally looks like a nightmare as an 8-bit sprite,..
mike-tyson-paid-75-dollar-for-punch-out.png
 

LevelSea

Senior member
Jan 29, 2013
942
53
91
rocky marciano
Oh there they go. There they go, every time I start talkin 'bout boxing, a white man got to pull Rocky Marciano out their ass. That's their one, that's their one. Rocky Marciano. Rocky Marciano. Let me tell you something once and for all. Rocky Marciano was good, but compared to Joe Louis, Rocky Marciano ain't shit.
 

smackababy

Lifer
Oct 30, 2008
27,024
79
86
Oh there they go. There they go, every time I start talkin 'bout boxing, a white man got to pull Rocky Marciano out their ass. That's their one, that's their one. Rocky Marciano. Rocky Marciano. Let me tell you something once and for all. Rocky Marciano was good, but compared to Joe Louis, Rocky Marciano ain't shit.

He beat Joe Louis' ass.
 

SamQuint

Golden Member
Dec 6, 2010
1,155
45
91
I don't put my faith that Ali could dance around Tyson for 10 rounds though. It is basically Russian Roulette. Ali had strong chin, but how many Tyson blows could he brush aside without slowing? People are quick to dismiss Tyson's boxing ability and say he was just some kind of beastmode rage fighter, but he wasn't. Before his divorce and outside the ring troubles (which many believe led to his upset against Douglas), he was incredible.


I watched the Douglas fight several times. Tyson was pretty much in his prime (37-0 about 5 years into his pro career) then and he just could not figure out a way to beat Douglas. Douglas pounded him with jabs and moved. Tyson just chased after him and was looking to score the big KO punch. It really looked like Tyson could not box with him or out score him.

I think Ali would outsmart Tyson, keep moving and out box him to get the decision. Ali would be too smart to stand toe to toe and would use his reach advantage and mobility to win the fight.

If Buster and Evander could beat Tyson, Ali certainly could.
 

Miramonti

Lifer
Aug 26, 2000
28,653
100
106
That's a really, really tough question. On the one hand, prime Tyson is easily the most dangerous fighter ever...on the other hand, prime Ali was the greatest ever at doing the kind of things he'd have to do to defeat Tyson.

Ali was the most evasive heavyweight ever- he could dodge most attacks and fall back quickly to reduce the power of an opponent's punch. Ali also had the greatest chin in history- he stood up to poundings from Foreman, Shavers, etc. Tyson's one-punch power might not have brought Ali down.

Ali was also the best at head games. Tyson was frightening but easily frustrated when intimidation failed. Tyson's laser focus might have failed if Ali proved a tough nut to crack.

Ali was a master of endurance and pacing, while Tyson was known to burn out. Knowing this, Ali would dance for ten rounds to exhaust, confuse, and enrage Tyson. Once Tyson was mentally disconnected, Ali could jump in for a quick kill, just like he did with Foreman.

And, of course, Ali had a massive reach advantage on Tyson, which would play right into Ali's game plan.

To get some idea of how Ali would have fought Tyson, watch the first Holyfield fight. Tyson was never really in it, and nobody is going to say that Holyfield was as great as Ali. Of course, that was post-Cus, post-Douglas, and post-prison...Tyson was perhaps even more dangerous than he used to be physically but past his prime mentally.

I think that, at the very peak of his powers, Tyson had about 2-1 odds to defeat Ali, but no shot at all post-Douglas.

I agree with this except the odds. Ali was a brilliant tactician and a great boxer. Tyson on the other hand was a great puncher, but I think Ali's skill would prevail. If they fought 3 times, I'd take Ali 2-1.

Another great matchup over history would be Sugar Ray Leonard vs. Floyd Mayweather. Mayweather's defensive quickness and reaction time is probably equal to the best in history for his weight class, but Leonard was a brilliant fighter that could take a punch, work angles, and never gave up.
 

Phoenix86

Lifer
May 21, 2003
14,644
10
81
Watch Tyson's footwork when he was knocking people out left and right. It is absolutely insane.
I don't think people understand how quick he was in his prime. Sure, he's incredibly strong, but that's never enough. You have to land those power punches and boy did he know how to do that.

Ali might have been able to get into his head, that's incredibly hard to factor in... I'd give it to Tyson in his prime, he was laser focused.
 

smackababy

Lifer
Oct 30, 2008
27,024
79
86
I watched the Douglas fight several times. Tyson was pretty much in his prime (37-0 about 5 years into his pro career) then and he just could not figure out a way to beat Douglas. Douglas pounded him with jabs and moved. Tyson just chased after him and was looking to score the big KO punch. It really looked like Tyson could not box with him or out score him.

I think Ali would outsmart Tyson, keep moving and out box him to get the decision. Ali would be too smart to stand toe to toe and would use his reach advantage and mobility to win the fight.

If Buster and Evander could beat Tyson, Ali certainly could.

Tyson was having a ton of out of the ring problems by the time the Douglas fight occurred. He was in the middle of a divorce with Gibbons, and I'm sure he was hitting the crack pipe regularly. While, he wasn't at his worst, he was in his decline (which is sad, because he could have gone a lot longer than he did). He didn't take preparations seriously for that fight. Not only that, his corner was in shambles. They didn't have an eye iron for fuck's sake.

As far as Evander, Tyson was out of prison and far beyond his prime by the time that happened. He was being carried by his physical ability alone by that point. He was the shell of his former self.
 

SamQuint

Golden Member
Dec 6, 2010
1,155
45
91
It is hard for me to judge the quality of Tyson's wins. I look at his wins before Douglas and none of those guys are household names. Not saying they were all chumps but I think Ali had a more competitive field. Larry Holmes and Spinks were well beyond their prime when they fought Tyson.
 

SamQuint

Golden Member
Dec 6, 2010
1,155
45
91
Tyson was having a ton of out of the ring problems by the time the Douglas fight occurred. He was in the middle of a divorce with Gibbons, and I'm sure he was hitting the crack pipe regularly. While, he wasn't at his worst, he was in his decline (which is sad, because he could have gone a lot longer than he did). He didn't take preparations seriously for that fight. Not only that, his corner was in shambles. They didn't have an eye iron for fuck's sake.

As far as Evander, Tyson was out of prison and far beyond his prime by the time that happened. He was being carried by his physical ability alone by that point. He was the shell of his former self.

Kind of my point, he could not figure out a way to beat Douglas on his own. Tyson really needed help and didn't get it from his corner so he ended up losing the fight. ALi would be smart enough to figure what to do if his plan wasn't working. Ali's experience and boxing IQ would be a major advantage.
 

smackababy

Lifer
Oct 30, 2008
27,024
79
86
Kind of my point, he could not figure out a way to beat Douglas on his own. Tyson really needed help and didn't get it from his corner so he ended up losing the fight. ALi would be smart enough to figure what to do if his plan wasn't working. Ali's experience and boxing IQ would be a major advantage.

The same boxing IQ that he displayed against Joe Frazier?
 

LevelSea

Senior member
Jan 29, 2013
942
53
91
He beat Joe Louis' ass.
Joe Louis came out of retirement to fight Marciano. He was 76 years old. Joe Louis always lied about his age. Once, Frank Sinatra sat in this chair. I said, "You hang out with Joe Louis. How old is he?" Frank said, "Joe Louis is 137 years old".
 

smackababy

Lifer
Oct 30, 2008
27,024
79
86
Joe Louis came out of retirement to fight Marciano. He was 76 years old. Joe Louis always lied about his age. Once, Frank Sinatra sat in this chair. I said, "You hang out with Joe Louis. How old is he?" Frank said, "Joe Louis is 137 years old".

Oh. Man, you lying, you ain't never meet no Frank Sinatra.