More intimidating fighters: Liston, Foreman, or Tyson?

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Not really, watch Tysons fight directly after Douglas. Tillman and Stewart, it was business as usual.

It was after the Holyfield loss after prison where fighters showed less fear of Tyson. Guys like Botha and Norris etc. Botha even laughed at Tyson and mocked him mid fight, no one had dared to do that before. Botha also double punched Tyson rounds the ears

 

To me that was a bit of a dirty, but bad ass performance from Tyson

Botha gave as good as he got and i think Botha felt he could pull off a Holyfield by outboxing and outdirtying Tyson. But Botha isnt Holyfield.

I like the end of one of the rounds where Botha is taunting Tyson, laughing at him and then he has Tyson in a grapple, when the bell rings he pushes Tyson back after the bell, Tyson then smirks at him and blatantly smacks him with an elbow in the face.

Poor performance by Tyson, but he showed no signs that he was mentally affected by the Holyfield losses. Physically he was VERY rusty, and that was the beginning of the end. The break between Holyfield 2 and Botha was about 2 years, the longest Tyson had since prison.

 

I'd say Tyson. Liston and George were big and scary for their time, but pretty non-verbal. Tyson, on the other hand, was viciously verbal and seemed to have genuine ill-will towards them.

 

yeah that's very true. I don't think Douglas completely took the aura away although it did damage it. Douglas was almost seen as a freak accident and people couldn't believe it, the image that was being promoted was that it wasn't the real Tyson that got beat, rightly or wrongly. It was only guys like Holyfield that were not scared by his image at that point. Although I always wondered if Holy would at all have been effected by unbeaten Mike, even for the unknown factor, anyone and everyone saw Mike as invincible, that must have some effect?

spot on about the image being destroyed after the first Holyfield loss. I remember thinking after that loss that it was all over for Mike, that his career wouldn't be the same again. It was such a comprehensive loss I couldn't even imagine Mike taking the rematch.

I think these guys are in the same ball park intimidation wise. I guess you could measure it by how many great fighters were intimidated.

 

Liston, though if he met someone like Mitch Green in the street, he'd come out second-best.

 

Liston would slap Mitch Green in the face for not saluting him properly to which Mitch would say "sorry sir"

 

All three would whoop Mitch Green, street or ring.

 

Not prime street Mitch.

 

Foreman was more of a thug.Prime Street Mitch would put a whupping on him and Tyson.Tyson's gang had nothing on the Black Spades.Mitch would show Sonny what real street fighting was about.

 

Why is that? Sonny had at least as much street fighting experience, not to mention fights in prison. Then his pro career.

The evidence seems to favor Liston.

 

If Liston and Mitch shared a prison cell, Liston would say 'yo *****, give me your ass'

and the most macho reply Green would give would be 'for how long Mr?'

 

Mitch did time in Rikers, and ran things in there.And he's also a bit nutty, so it seems to favor Blood.A guy named Blood is not going to get punked by a guy named Sonny.

 

Wouldn't go down like that.Mitch would hit Sonny so hard he would knock the mustache off his face.