If Bowe fought smart, meaning he doesn't trade with Tyson, then and only then does he have a chance. Bowe couldn't afford to fight Tyson like he did Holyfield because in all 3 fights we saw both guys duke it out with Bowe getting the upper hand because Holyfield didn't hit hard enough...until 1995. Even then Bowe wasn't afraid of Holyfield's power. Even after getting dropped, Bowe was let back into the fight because Holyfield tired. And right back Bowe went to slugging it out with Holyfield tiring and trading in the 8th.
This has become a mess and is npw so very distant from the original argument like most threads on Tyson. Let it die lest we see another Bowe vs Primo (Someone please Bump that masterpiece)
Unfortunately this is part of the forum game. It veers off in many directions and for many pages at that. Still... October 13, 1990: Tyson KO 5 Foreman
Put it a year before and I'm close to agreeing with you. I don't put Tyson over Foreman after the Douglas fight.
I highly doubt that. And why? Because Foreman landed a miraculous shot against Michael Moorer's china? Tyson beats Foreman up until probably 2001. Foreman wishes he could replicate what Douglas, and later Holyfield, could do to Tyson. Axel Schulz, Alex Stewart, Tommy Morrison, Lou Savarese and Crawford Grimsley all happily stood toe to toe with Foreman. Tyson would absolutely maul him.
Foreman takes a hellacious beating, he'll be taking on the meatiest combination punching fighter hes ever faced past his prime, his speed lets him down here horrifically. Foreman wanted the payday and between Cus and a few tailor made opponents, convinced a lot of fans he had a chance. This is PRIME Tyson we are talking about who wouldn't gas and had a monster chin, with a stupid advantage in speed. One fast shot could stun Foreman, the follow up would see George topple imo slowly
I just don't see Mike coming inside and greeting that Foreman uppercut. Prime Tyson forces a Foreman knockdown but as he comes in he ends up the same way he did with Holy: he gets hit with the same punch that nearly took Ali's head off in Zaire and goes down, unconscious, for the count. The ring doctors have to revive him from that shot. That right that landed by Holy with Mike coming in (and basically ended their first fight) was powerful mostly because Mike stepped right into it. Sooner or later, George is going to land, and Mike couldn't ever take that kind of power, never mind walking right into it.
He was older, slower and had far less snap in his punches not to mention the timing was off. He didn't particularly have an appetite for fighting the best available competition unless a belt was on the line and that fighter appears to be vunerable. 1) The version of Holyfield that Tyson fought and the Holyfield that Foreman fought are almost completely different fighters. But if you're going to make comparisons, lets look at Alex Stewart. He fought Foreman, Holyfield and Tyson. Tyson showed that there is a huge gulf in terms of ability. 2) The Foreman who fought Lyle is not the same guy that reappeared in the 80s-90s. Smith, Bruno and Ruddock are pretty big punchers. I'd say Ruddock hits harder than Lyle. Razor caught Tyson a few times but Tyson's chin was granite and he never got dropped by any of the big punchers he faced. Dropping Tyson required a long sustained beating in which exhaustion is also a factor. 3) Foreman got up to win against Lyle. But against Ali and Young he either got up and continued to lose or he didn't get up at all. Getting up to win a fight isn't really a measure of heart. Tyson took a bigger beating from Douglas then Foreman did from Ali yet Tyson was willing to continue whereas Foreman had seen enough. So I'd stick with Marginal. Foreman beating Moorer is an incredible achievement and I don't think that being disputed by anybody. However with regards to Morrison? Before facing Foreman, Tommy lost to Ray Mercer shattering his confidence. Then he fought both Joe Hipp and Carl "the Truth" Williams where he survived a broken jaw (against Hipp) and near KO losses against what was thought to be lesser men. Going into the Foreman fight he fought more tentatively than he had been in the past. George saw a vulnerable fighter who's biggest weakness aligns with George's biggest strength. As for style? Tyson prefers to fight in the mid-range where the fight will take place. George isn't elusive, not will he make Tyson miss. He is a large target. He will get hit, early and often. Tyson won't be the one backing up either. Foreman will. Tyson would be walking him down and landing at will resulting in a mercy stoppage. Frazier was down 11 times in his career. 8 against Foreman and twice against Bonevena, and once against Mike Bruce. Not sure he's the best example of granite chin. Chuvalo was previously stopped by Frazier by and Foreman never took him off his feet. Tyson I should point out stopped Larry Holmes; something nobody has been able to do. The Holyfield that fought Tyson and the Holyfield that fought Foreman are NOT the same fighter. Just look at a photo and there are a clear differences in their size and appearance and style. Overall this isn't a style that favors Foreman. And it's a fight he'd lose.
Tyson never avenged a loss because Douglas refused to give him a rematch. They went through enormous lengths to get a fight with Buster but it didn't work. To be fair Tyson was chasing Holyfield around trying to get the titles back and Holyfield was the one who decided to avoid Mike. Also there has never been anything to tie Mike Tyson in a steroid scandal. He only tested positive for marijuana but has never been caught or even implicated in a PED scandal, as a result I give him the presumption of innocence and continue to view him as a clean fighter. As should you.
Tyson absorbed and walked right through Ruddock's infamous "smash" hybrid hook/uppercut a number of times. He'll handle a single Foreman uppercut as well. Foreman is slow to put them together and it will take more than slow, single shots to topple Tyson. Razor Ruddock was far more dangerous than Comeback Foreman. I would take Ruddock to pound on Old Foreman as well.
Ruddock was basically a one-handed fighter. Foreman wasn't. Foreman's right uppercut trumps the hell out of Ruddock's left hookercut. More power (though admittedly less speed). Watch Holy catch Mike coming in and knock him across the ring. Foreman would have landed a much harder shot and Mike wouldn't have got up from it. Imo of course.
