Dont understand obsession w/ Tyson

Underground
1

I don't understand people's continued obsession and infatuation with Mike Tyson.

Tyson has looked HORRIBLE the past 5 years of his career. And while I didn't expect him to quite stoop to this level and not come out of his corner vs. a lumbering, talentless fool like McBride, I knew he was not the same fighter ever since his dismal performance vs. Lewis, and that his career was essentially over.

Tyson, on top of it, was never an all-time great for one moment of his career. He never beat a legit "great" HW, nor did he ever pull through a tough fight! He has no jab, a style that deteriorated over the years to resemble a drunken Russian sailor in a barfight.

On top of it all, Tyson, throughout his career, has shown the heart of an old church lady. He didn't want to get up to face Danny Williams and Kevin McBride. To think that anyone could consider this sad, strange man elite is beyond me.

Good riddance to Mike Tyson. I enjoyed his outlandish interviews, but welcome the shift in the spotlight to boxing's true warriors. Similarly to how I hope Tyson disappearing from boxing will shift the press's headlines to better and more deserving fighters, I hope his "fans" and ignorant people across the world that think Tyson = boxing erase him from their memories just as quickly.

2

SaintDogg - so quickly?!? His extreme decline has been evident for 5 years!

3

Ill tell you why Rage. The majority of this forum doesn't really follow boxing. Especially since after MMA started in the states. Before that, Tyson was the name in the hw division. A division some people think is the be all end all. Granted I was in kindergarten the last time he actually was a top hw, but still that doesn't detract people from nut hugging Tyson every chance they get over legit fighters like pretty much the whole 140 pound division. For instance, how much love did Miguel Cotto get on this forum over Mike Tyson after their fights on the same nights? Cotto, had a better fight, is probably the next big thing, and is 24-0 20 kos. Yet, I bet half this forum never knew that, they only know Mike Tyson bit Holyfield's ear once and that makes him "unpredictable and fun to watch"

4

Oh come on. The idea that there were no great heavyweights in the late 80s, when Tyson cleaned out the division, is ludicrous. Boxing was losing popularity then, it's true, and few of those fights got a lot of hype. But the idea that Spinks, Tucker, Thomas, Bonecrusher were all slackers is ludicrous. These guys didn't get hyped as much because boxing was losing popularity, but they were all very tough and accomplished.

Tyson was a real student of the game who was absolutely dominant for five years or so, then in jail, then a marquee fighter for another 5, and then has been washed up for the last few years. Besides all that, he was very exciting and rejuvenated heavyweight boxing for more casual fans.

5

To follow up, I think some Tyson bashers either don't know, or forget, the context for Tyson's early career.

First off, there is the baby boomer love affair with Ali. Ali was the champ when baby boomers were kids, so this colors their view. For them, there can never be a heavyweight champ better than Ali. They have to tear down Marciano, Holmes, and Tyson as a result. Don't believe their baloney.

Second, when Tyson came along, heavyweight boxing was still the highest paying job for big men, and was still attracting top athletes. You could argue that football was paying better by the late 80s, but in the early 80s, it was not. Tyson came up fighting tough guys.

Third, when Tyson came along, boxing was in danger of dying. The debate in the 80s was whether to get RID of boxing, i.e. make it illegal. Fights were usually shown at arenas on big screens, not on cable PPVs. Yes, you went to your local hockey/basketball arena and watched the fight on the jumbotron. This is another reason people stopped following boxing.

Tyson changed a lot of that. Those marquee fights he had in the 90s, and his dominant career in the 80s, really rejuvenated boxing. Serious boxing fans know this. And Tyson studied under Cus D'Amato. Tyson was, and still is, a serious boxing student and fan, not a dumb brawler.

6

TRJ - Well said. But you're on the boxing forum too, so you know I love Cotto and gave him mad props ; )

7

Redskins fan - Those guys ARE scrubs, no different than Williamson, Ruiz, Brewster, etc. are too! The HW division goes through severe droughts of talent, and Tyson's emergence as champ and decline to nothingness came at times that the HW division was weak.

By who he beat, who he lost to, and how he won/loss, Tyson is by no means anywhere close to being an all-time revered talent, nor is he worthy of all the threads and press he's getting for losing again and finally throwing in the towel.

8

crushing power

9

I'd much rather watch Cotto and guys in that weight class. They are more technical, aggressive and better conditioned.

It baffles me why Tyson gets so much love here.

TRJ for Boxing Forum Mod!

10

LOL @ Fabes, im ready and willing!!!

11

Tyson and Michael Jackson are the same in pop culture that we still
imagine them in the primes of their careers and don't want to admit
what they've become.

Both also changed their faces.

12

While Tyson may have been in a relatively weak heavyweight period, he DEMOLISHED everybody put in front of him.

13

I think it was said best at the post fight press conference when someone stood up and thanked Mike despite Mike's request for no fan-fare. He stated that Mike had so many fans because he will be remembered as one of THE MOST EXCITING sports figures to ever live. People can argue till the cows come home on who's better than who, but no one can deny that Mike captured the hearts of millions and commanded that kind of respect until he left the sport because fans hoped to posssibley glimpse something that doesn't come along very often.

14

i want to clarify a things here

this dumb myth that tyson never a tough fight is just stupid

  1. james "quick"Tillis an excellent continder in the 80's gave tyson a very hard time but tyson pulled it out with a knock down to win a decison a few people question...

2.tony tucker a big strong heavyweight champion in the 80's was unbeaten when he fought tyson and lost a tough 12 decison to tyson...this is the same tucker that in 93 challenged lennox lewis for the crown and had the record of 47-1 with the only lose being to tyson...(he went the distance with lewis)
if not for drugs he might have been an all time great

  1. there was a preety good fighter tyson ko'd in 11th round early in a good fight

4.his two back and foward brawl victories over razor raddock...who was a hard hitting continder that both foreman(i love foreman but razor would have ko'd him) and holyfield refused to fight
razor ko'd quite a few big strong hw's like dokes etc
razor rocked tyson alot and tyson came back to win those fights

5.buster douglas...any genius that can count 10 secounds...knows buster was down for the long count...

after jail he came back and yes he did not win wars but he took punishment against guys like lewis and showed a rock chin in that fight
(look at this david tua took a few hard lewis shots and backed off while tyson kept coming the whole time before getting ko'd)

and people say he has not beaten a top heavyweight since 1991 again a stupid statement..

frank bruno(former world champ),bruce seldon(former world champ),franz bothia(former world champ),andrew golota top continder and 4 time world championship challenger,lou saveresse another top 10-15 guy,
orlin norris a former top cruiseweight and descent heavyweight....

if a guy like brewser or someone other then tyson beat those guys...with such ease people would this guy is amazing

it is not tyson's fault that he crashed all those guys
it's his skill that made him beat top 10 heavywieghts so easily...

but sadly now the man seems to be done but you what no one was talking crap like this when ali was getting ass kicked by holmes and berbek...instead they were crying

get used to it tyson is all time great but all greats he got old and his lifestyle did not help him

and as far as him losing to mcbride goes hey check you records legends like ezzard charles were losing to club fighters when they were old too

15

people will always be interested him because he was the BADDEST MAN ON THE PLANET at a time when media allowed the world to see his brutal skills.

16

"NO HW boxer has beat a LEGIT "GREAT" in their PRIME since ALI period"

those were gift decisions for the most part... frasier handled him

17

K, I admit I exaggerated by saying he was not an all-time great ever. Before he lost to Douglas, he truly was the "Baddest Man on the Planet."

The reason I got carried away and made that huge generalization was because I do not understand why people are still so in awe of him, nor why they're so surprised he lost to McBride! This has been coming for YEARS! He has never looked the same since Douglas, got schooled by Holyfield before he bit him the 2nd time around, etc. I just think it has been too obvious for too long that he's been on the decline for his final decay to be this surprising to so many people.

He stopped being a "great" fighter over a decade ago.

18

"When he loses, they kind of go into denial and come up with excuses for him. He is the product of a HUGE marketing machine, and is proof that good salesmen can hype a product to the point that it sells for 1000 times its worth and is desired by an extremely large number of consumers. "

Agreed

19

i think i made alot of good points that mr ragewithin should read....

even on the decline he beat alot of guys that many guys would be proud to beat

20

actually when he was younger he set alot of combos by coming in and jabbing

he jabbed alot more other people of style
like joe frazier