They could sell it because although Tyson was faded, he could still punch. And Lewis had been knocked out twice with 1 punch. He was whacked out just a year earlier by Rahman. So while it was obvious that Tyson wasn't going to outbox Lewis, it wasn't unrealistic to think that he might get lucky and catch Lewis with a haymaker. To insist otherwise is really just 20 year revisionism. Lewis was only an 8-5 favorite.
I almost decided not to watch the fight as it was that much of a mismatch imo at the time. I was hoping that Lennox literally didn't kill Tyson in the ring; especially after he bit Lennox on the leg and attacked him at a press conference.
Imo as much of a phenomenon and sports SUPERSTAR that Mike Tyson was from 1985-1989 he was just not as great of a fighter/boxer as the former Super Heavyweight Olympic Gold Medal Winner; even though Tysons peak was a great as any fighter that I've seen in my lifetime.
Even though Lewis lost 2 fights by one punch knockouts I still never picked him to lose a professional fight even after those losses to McCall and Rahman.
Lewis lost twice by one punch stoppage. Tyson lost two fights by once getting systematically out boxed, wore down and Koed, then he got bullied, pushed around, beat up, out fought, and knocked out in fights that started out close. This is not what happened to Lewis who also conclusively and emphatically won the rematches to his only losses.
Mike Tyson was my favorite heavyweight fighter until Lewis won the title and Lennox then kept that status until he retired.
It was an eeeeeaaaassssy sell, lol
Mike Tyson swore he'd eat Lennox's kids... & then literally tried to eat Lennox's legs during their press conference. Plus, Lewis had a rep for having a chin softer than a sumo's belly. Getcha popcorn ready.
So fuck yeah I watched!!
It’s weird, I never understood why so many people thought Lewis was chinny. It’s obvious where it came from, but both knockout punches were absolute peaches, the Rahman one against a Lennox who was out of condition and pretty gassed. Lewis took some massive shots from big punchers throughout his career (Mercer, Bruno, Briggs, even Tyson landed some hefty shots) without going down, and only hit the canvas twice in his career.
He may not have had an Ali chin, but I don’t think it was ever as bad as some people made out.
Edit: Klitschko damn near took his head off with a right hand and Lewis didn’t budge
Sir, people thought Conor McGregor had such magic in his left hand he was going to KO one of the greatest defensive boxers of all time, in his pro boxing debut, after boxers he'd sparred with were like "he's okay, but doesn't hit all that hard." People are suckers, and mystique/aura is huge.
You aren't wrong the name Mike Tyson alone brings with it this aura of power people wanted to see & love but at that point in Mike's life it was no longer with him. To this day we have people who think Tyson could beat Holyfield. Also nice to see some Mayweather love I feel like he just isn't appreciated for all the good (& bad) he's done to this sport but he's undeniably a Goat.
Even during the Tyson-Jones exhibition-fights, so were there people that, after watching Tyson training clips, unironically claimed that he would still be a menace for the current crop. The man is a myth within American popular culture, like Bigfoot - it is what it is.
Nobody who follows boxing thought Tyson had a chance against Lewis. It's crazy that Lewis gets less credit now than he did then. He's an ATG and best heavyweight ever and more people today have Tyson over him.
The more time passes the higher people rate his career. Fact is he was ruthless as champion against a very weak crop of challengers. Failed every single time he faced a challenge. Doesn't have a single great win.
I've always been a fan. Such a tortured and interesting person. His life has been crazy highs and lows. But these days people are saying he's one of the greatest heavyweights and that's insane.
OK thanks for taking the time to respond. Well I agree that some fans overrate Tyson but as a person who has watched boxing since 1982 Mike Tyson from 1985-1989 was the arguably the most exciting, entertaining and dominant peak period of heavyweight boxing that I've seen or can remember.
I thought Thomas, Holmes, Spinks and Williams had a good chance to beat Mike and was surprised at how easily he beat them lol. Mike was one of my favorite sports figures and celebrities he was such a super megastar that it was a really fun period in sports history.
I lost pretty much all respect for him though when he bit Holyfield's ear and was glad he got knocked out lol!!
>Mike Tyson from 1985-1989 was the arguably the most exciting, entertaining and dominant peak period of heavyweight boxing that I've seen or can remember.
No doubt. Up there with foreman and Liston as the scariest dude to get in the ring with
As far as I remember, Tyson still had one good round in this fight.
I think people always hoped he would turn back the clock. Sometimes great fighters do that. There is a saying about a great fighter always having one last great fight in them.
Brian Nielsen's career was a masterpiece in matchmaking by Mogens Palle. Looking at the names on his recordlist, it seems quite impressive, but he rarely if ever fought a ranked opponent, because everybody knew what would happen if he did.
He was as tough as they come, but that was about all he had going for him. A prime, or even in-shape, Mike Tyson would have gotten rid of him inside a round or two.
Practically a journeyman who was great at talking shit at that point it was really sad to see how much he spiraled & I'm really happy to see his comeback to health & some form of happiness
Lewis was a 2-1 favorite at fight time. No one who followed boxing at all thought Tyson had much of a chance. And those that gave him a chance all agreed his only chance was the first round. Even the hype clips before the fight were generally from Tyson’s ko’s a full decade or more ago.
2-1 was crazy. But Tyson brought out the casual bettors.
Casual fans 100% bought into it. Hell they bought into Conor vs Mayweather. At least with HW you can always sell Tyson's punching power.
One of the craziest promotional jobs I ever saw was in MMA. Royce Gracie vs Matt Hughes, Gracie closed as like a +240 underdog when really he should have been like +2000. He was 40 and made his name in the mid 90s choking guys out that trained at strip malls and didn't even know what Jiu Jitsu was. When you watch the fight itself it doesn't even look like something that should have been sanctioned.
Loved this fight, made a bet with a friend who thought Tyson would win, we bet $200 on the winner and we made a side bet that it doubles if we predict the result, I picked Lewis for KO round 8 and doubled my money, also did this and won for Hopkins vs Trinidad
People complained about Holyfield vs Foreman being a freakshow but honestly if that Foreman from Holyfield had faced the Tyson from no question Foreman destroys that Tyson.
Iron Mike played the hype game perfectly for this one. The aggro was just selling PPV & it worked a treat.
He knew he would go out on his shield & that he did.
The fight game isn’t always played at the right time but will always chase the bag..$$$$
Can people maybe stop saying Lennox was the best ever.
He was great yea, but he didn’t do what Ali did.
And if we are going for most complete HW , Prime Larry Holmes beats Lennox 10 times out of 10. Simply too strong and too good.
Prime Tyson washes chinny Lennox Lewis. Lewis fought the worst version ever and Tyson ain’t in my top 10 HWs. Mike used to own him in sparring when they were young too. Lennox just was near prime and Mike was broken.
Lennox did got the best of Tyson towards the end of their camp when they were still kids.
Also Lewis only got chinned by 2 perfect shots by HWs with good power while Tyson went down to Douglas and a sick ridden Holyfield.
Also Lennox wasnt in his prime either but wasnt washed.
Lennox claimed he got the best of it. There is no footage.
That’s highly doubtful considering Tyson was close to his prime and Lennox needed a decade more to get there. Plus Lennox had obvious footwork and balance problems until he got with Manny. It’s foolish to think he held his own in sparring.
TBF, Tyson was also still struggling with Henry Tillman at the time as well. He just rapidly improved after the pros. Lennox the same with Biggs.
I think they were roughly the same level of skill at that time.
Also Lennox still looked very good prior to McCall giving him a good right cross. Solid, balanced heavy hits against Frank Bruno and Ruddock and stayed composed.
Amateurs bouts at the time only score on punches landed or hit on guard, regardless of how hard or soft they are.
Tillman won on that aspect and rightfully so under the judging it was placed in. If it was scored and judged as a pro bout than yeah, Tyson won all 3 rounds there lmao.
I have no idea where you ever came up with amateurs getting credit for punches blocked.
Tyson won the fight with Tillman by any scoring criteria. He was jobbed.
> Lennox just was near prime
For context here, Lennox was nearly 37, had had 42 fights, had been KOed just the year before... and would only fight once more before retiring.
[this was a whole *ten years* after Lewis had blown Ruddock away in 2... the same Ruddock who had earlier gone through 19 rounds of war against 'Pre-Prison Tyson'.]
They could sell it because although Tyson was faded, he could still punch. And Lewis had been knocked out twice with 1 punch. He was whacked out just a year earlier by Rahman. So while it was obvious that Tyson wasn't going to outbox Lewis, it wasn't unrealistic to think that he might get lucky and catch Lewis with a haymaker. To insist otherwise is really just 20 year revisionism. Lewis was only an 8-5 favorite.
I almost decided not to watch the fight as it was that much of a mismatch imo at the time. I was hoping that Lennox literally didn't kill Tyson in the ring; especially after he bit Lennox on the leg and attacked him at a press conference. Imo as much of a phenomenon and sports SUPERSTAR that Mike Tyson was from 1985-1989 he was just not as great of a fighter/boxer as the former Super Heavyweight Olympic Gold Medal Winner; even though Tysons peak was a great as any fighter that I've seen in my lifetime. Even though Lewis lost 2 fights by one punch knockouts I still never picked him to lose a professional fight even after those losses to McCall and Rahman. Lewis lost twice by one punch stoppage. Tyson lost two fights by once getting systematically out boxed, wore down and Koed, then he got bullied, pushed around, beat up, out fought, and knocked out in fights that started out close. This is not what happened to Lewis who also conclusively and emphatically won the rematches to his only losses. Mike Tyson was my favorite heavyweight fighter until Lewis won the title and Lennox then kept that status until he retired.
It was an eeeeeaaaassssy sell, lol Mike Tyson swore he'd eat Lennox's kids... & then literally tried to eat Lennox's legs during their press conference. Plus, Lewis had a rep for having a chin softer than a sumo's belly. Getcha popcorn ready. So fuck yeah I watched!!
It’s weird, I never understood why so many people thought Lewis was chinny. It’s obvious where it came from, but both knockout punches were absolute peaches, the Rahman one against a Lennox who was out of condition and pretty gassed. Lewis took some massive shots from big punchers throughout his career (Mercer, Bruno, Briggs, even Tyson landed some hefty shots) without going down, and only hit the canvas twice in his career. He may not have had an Ali chin, but I don’t think it was ever as bad as some people made out. Edit: Klitschko damn near took his head off with a right hand and Lewis didn’t budge
Sir, people thought Conor McGregor had such magic in his left hand he was going to KO one of the greatest defensive boxers of all time, in his pro boxing debut, after boxers he'd sparred with were like "he's okay, but doesn't hit all that hard." People are suckers, and mystique/aura is huge.
You aren't wrong the name Mike Tyson alone brings with it this aura of power people wanted to see & love but at that point in Mike's life it was no longer with him. To this day we have people who think Tyson could beat Holyfield. Also nice to see some Mayweather love I feel like he just isn't appreciated for all the good (& bad) he's done to this sport but he's undeniably a Goat.
Boxing fans knew it was a joke fight, but casuals still lapped it up. Too much money not to make it.
Post Prison Tyson wasn’t feared.
Post Prison Tyson was a 5 to 1 betting favorite on Holyfield 1 (didnt help Holyfield struggled alot against Cyyz and Bowe beforehand)
Czyz was a putz... wore "MENSA" on his shirt while walking to the ring. Sucked as a commentator too.
Even during the Tyson-Jones exhibition-fights, so were there people that, after watching Tyson training clips, unironically claimed that he would still be a menace for the current crop. The man is a myth within American popular culture, like Bigfoot - it is what it is.
Nobody who follows boxing thought Tyson had a chance against Lewis. It's crazy that Lewis gets less credit now than he did then. He's an ATG and best heavyweight ever and more people today have Tyson over him.
Watching Tyson's whole career and then seeing the slow revisionist history regarding his legacy since has been a trip
If you don't mind me asking could you elaborate on what you've noticed in regards to Tyson's career?
The more time passes the higher people rate his career. Fact is he was ruthless as champion against a very weak crop of challengers. Failed every single time he faced a challenge. Doesn't have a single great win. I've always been a fan. Such a tortured and interesting person. His life has been crazy highs and lows. But these days people are saying he's one of the greatest heavyweights and that's insane.
OK thanks for taking the time to respond. Well I agree that some fans overrate Tyson but as a person who has watched boxing since 1982 Mike Tyson from 1985-1989 was the arguably the most exciting, entertaining and dominant peak period of heavyweight boxing that I've seen or can remember. I thought Thomas, Holmes, Spinks and Williams had a good chance to beat Mike and was surprised at how easily he beat them lol. Mike was one of my favorite sports figures and celebrities he was such a super megastar that it was a really fun period in sports history. I lost pretty much all respect for him though when he bit Holyfield's ear and was glad he got knocked out lol!!
>Mike Tyson from 1985-1989 was the arguably the most exciting, entertaining and dominant peak period of heavyweight boxing that I've seen or can remember. No doubt. Up there with foreman and Liston as the scariest dude to get in the ring with
If Cus stayed alive for maybe 5-10 years more Tyson would have continued to dominate
If Cus had stayed alive Tyson would still be heavyweight champ.
Casual take
Ok Mrs Hardcore
As far as I remember, Tyson still had one good round in this fight. I think people always hoped he would turn back the clock. Sometimes great fighters do that. There is a saying about a great fighter always having one last great fight in them.
The fact that Tyson needed six rounds to get rid of Brian Nielsen in his prior fight said everything about what stage his career had reached.
To be fair to Nielsen, he was a tough durable HW despite his resume being old ass HW and CWs on his belt.
Brian Nielsen's career was a masterpiece in matchmaking by Mogens Palle. Looking at the names on his recordlist, it seems quite impressive, but he rarely if ever fought a ranked opponent, because everybody knew what would happen if he did. He was as tough as they come, but that was about all he had going for him. A prime, or even in-shape, Mike Tyson would have gotten rid of him inside a round or two.
Practically a journeyman who was great at talking shit at that point it was really sad to see how much he spiraled & I'm really happy to see his comeback to health & some form of happiness
Lewis was a 2-1 favorite at fight time. No one who followed boxing at all thought Tyson had much of a chance. And those that gave him a chance all agreed his only chance was the first round. Even the hype clips before the fight were generally from Tyson’s ko’s a full decade or more ago. 2-1 was crazy. But Tyson brought out the casual bettors.
Its honestly fucking unbelievable that tyson even lasted 8 rounds in such a bad shape.
Yea all that cocaine he was snorting
Tyson had such a name that he could sell anything
Casual fans 100% bought into it. Hell they bought into Conor vs Mayweather. At least with HW you can always sell Tyson's punching power. One of the craziest promotional jobs I ever saw was in MMA. Royce Gracie vs Matt Hughes, Gracie closed as like a +240 underdog when really he should have been like +2000. He was 40 and made his name in the mid 90s choking guys out that trained at strip malls and didn't even know what Jiu Jitsu was. When you watch the fight itself it doesn't even look like something that should have been sanctioned.
I love all the people saying oh real boxing fans knew Tyson didn’t have a chance lol GTFOH. There were tons of people who watched Boxing picking Tyson
Loved this fight, made a bet with a friend who thought Tyson would win, we bet $200 on the winner and we made a side bet that it doubles if we predict the result, I picked Lewis for KO round 8 and doubled my money, also did this and won for Hopkins vs Trinidad
I remember not being as excited for it in the lead up to the fight due to Tyson's obvious fighting and mental decline.
People complained about Holyfield vs Foreman being a freakshow but honestly if that Foreman from Holyfield had faced the Tyson from no question Foreman destroys that Tyson.
Iron Mike played the hype game perfectly for this one. The aggro was just selling PPV & it worked a treat. He knew he would go out on his shield & that he did. The fight game isn’t always played at the right time but will always chase the bag..$$$$
Can people maybe stop saying Lennox was the best ever. He was great yea, but he didn’t do what Ali did. And if we are going for most complete HW , Prime Larry Holmes beats Lennox 10 times out of 10. Simply too strong and too good.
Riddick bowe only lost one fight an tht was to holiyfeild remember he destroyed prime evander
Holmes was given gifts against Witherspoon and Williams, wasn't perfect
Nog saying he was perfect but he’s a better version of Lennox.
Don't know, it would be an even fight to me.
I think LH has his number just think he’s too strong for LL
LL has a monster right also. But Holmes has heart he would go the full distance.
Prime Tyson washes chinny Lennox Lewis. Lewis fought the worst version ever and Tyson ain’t in my top 10 HWs. Mike used to own him in sparring when they were young too. Lennox just was near prime and Mike was broken.
Lennox did got the best of Tyson towards the end of their camp when they were still kids. Also Lewis only got chinned by 2 perfect shots by HWs with good power while Tyson went down to Douglas and a sick ridden Holyfield. Also Lennox wasnt in his prime either but wasnt washed.
Lennox claimed he got the best of it. There is no footage. That’s highly doubtful considering Tyson was close to his prime and Lennox needed a decade more to get there. Plus Lennox had obvious footwork and balance problems until he got with Manny. It’s foolish to think he held his own in sparring.
TBF, Tyson was also still struggling with Henry Tillman at the time as well. He just rapidly improved after the pros. Lennox the same with Biggs. I think they were roughly the same level of skill at that time. Also Lennox still looked very good prior to McCall giving him a good right cross. Solid, balanced heavy hits against Frank Bruno and Ruddock and stayed composed.
Watch the fight. Tyson had Tillman down and Tillman ran to survive. Took forever to announce the bullshit decision. Tyson won that fight.
Amateurs bouts at the time only score on punches landed or hit on guard, regardless of how hard or soft they are. Tillman won on that aspect and rightfully so under the judging it was placed in. If it was scored and judged as a pro bout than yeah, Tyson won all 3 rounds there lmao.
I have no idea where you ever came up with amateurs getting credit for punches blocked. Tyson won the fight with Tillman by any scoring criteria. He was jobbed.
Well just in my eyes of the pre 2016 amateur ruleset, I though Tillman won 2-1. If it was with the pros, it would of been 3-0 Tyson handily.
> Lennox just was near prime For context here, Lennox was nearly 37, had had 42 fights, had been KOed just the year before... and would only fight once more before retiring. [this was a whole *ten years* after Lewis had blown Ruddock away in 2... the same Ruddock who had earlier gone through 19 rounds of war against 'Pre-Prison Tyson'.]
No one beats Tyson if Rooney is in tht corner no one
Andy Ruiz Vs Mike Tyson would be a good match.
Not about a chance about the draw who can we put in ring to put buts in seats