Prime Larry Holmes vs Mike Tyson

I really don't think Tyson has a great chin. He was durable, but not in an unbelievable sort of way. I could easily names 2 dozen heavyweights that were much tougher.

 

No one took him out with a single punch or KO'd him cold. All his KO losses were after taking a beating throughout the fight.

 

Exactly. You had to pummel him over the course of a fight and drown him in the later rounds. He was never dropped by single shots, only from an accumulation. Douglas, Holyfield and Lewis...well I think Lewis dropped him with a single right hand followed by a push, but that was after Tyson was completely done.

 

Tbh I think Tyson's chin is very underrated. It was his stamina and (in his later career) mental fortitude that led to his KO losses. His chin was solid.

 

Horrible matchup for Tyson. He was all about that great timing coming in. And there is no better jab in the business to disrupt that than the Holmes' jab. Tyson gets frustrated and Larry stops him late

 

Pinklon Thomas had a better jab than Holmes.

 

Lol

 

I agree. And it certainly worked better for Thomas against Tyson than it did for Holmes. Holmes-Thomas would've been a sweet fight to watch.

 

well for one thing Tyson and Ruddock stood slugging toe to toe for 12 rounds and Ruddock still lost. I don’t know how good of an example that is but it’s at least one such instance. James Douglas wasn’t the fighter that Larry Holmes was but he had a great deal of size on Tyson and probably more power than Larry did. I’ve also never been completely convinced that Mike Tyson was 100% on the evening he fought him. As for Holmes defeating prime tough fighters as you say, this statement needs to be taken with a grain of salt as Holmes AVOIDED a lot of the prime tough fighters of his era while struggling mightily with the ones he faced. He was understandably past his prime when he fought Williams and Witherspoon however both those men had 15-16 fights with very few notable wins and frankly I’m not so sure Larry even deserved the nod in either of those decisions.

 

That's true. You're having your turn in making a good point, but I don't think that makes him one of the greatest chins of all time.

 

More good points against me. I must say though that the best fighters Larry fought he was still able to soundly defeat in the end. Norton, Shavers II, Leon Spinks, and Cooney are all examples of this. Some of Tyson's fights at this level, like his decision wins over James Tillis, James Smith, and Tony Tucker, the top fighters of the mid-late 80s-Tyson struggled with them a lot. Sure, Larry struggled with Weaver, Berbick, Snipes, and Spoon, guys who should have been park-walks, but I'm just saying.

 

This discussion is not about the quality of Holmes' opponents and Tyson's opponents, if they were washed up or green when the two champs fought them, and how many they fought, and so on. What determines a good chin has nothing to do with the quality of opposition. It has to do with how badly you get hurt and how good you come back.

Holmes:
Norton-Larry entered the fight with a torn shoulder I believe, something like that, sustained a cut inside the mouth, and took a body beating after dominating the first half of the fight, he was almost finished, but staged a good rally at the end of round 15 to win
Weaver 1-Larry entered this fight after having the flu, he was floored briefly in round 4, and slugged freely with the stronger man; he stopped Weaver in round 12 after REALLY dropping him in the round b4
Shavers 2-Larry dominated Shavers for 7 rounds, but was nearly KO'd at the end of round 7 by a perfectly-timed right overhand, he got up, and though reassumed command, was still hurt several more times in the next 4 rounds before savagely stopping Shavers
Berbick-Here Larry goes toe-to-toe with a big, hulking, underrated yet formidable guy. Berbick held his own and Larry still won a comfortable decision.
Snipes-After being decked in round 7, Larry forced a stoppage in round 11
Cooney-After flooring Cooney in round 2, Larry was slightly put on the defensive, and for the first time, fighting a bigger man. Cooney slugged with Holmes, and Holmes came back to stop a tiring Cooney in round 13 after some wicked low blows in round 11.
Witherspoon-Larry survived some relentless one-sided poundings in rounds 7 and 9, and came roaring back both times to pepper the exhausted Spoon. Bad decision perhaps, maybe.
Smith I-Larry cut badly from headbutt in round 10 I believe, steps into action and stops the bigger man in round 12.
Larry even showed a lot of heart in his robbery over Williams, and in his fights with Michael Spinks. You even see it in the Tyson fight. He outslugged the rugged Mercer, and lasted 12 vs. prime and dangerous Holyfield and McCall.

Tyson:
Reggie Gross-After giving Gross a going-over, Gross erupts with some great combinations that turn out to be somewhat deceptive due to Tyson's good body movement. Tyson does absorb 5 or 6 humdingers though.
Tony Tucker-Tyson was hurt a little in the 1st round, and pressed the action all the way, absorbing many good flurries throughout a competitive fight with a good boxer. Very close fight which Tyson did not dominate, but still won.
Frank Bruno I-Tyson was rocked in round 1, but got back in the fight and stopped Bruno.
Razor Ruddock-For the first time Tyson was fighting a guy who was trading bombs with him more than anyone ever had. In the second fight Tyson suffered a burst eardrum.
Tyson did hang tough in his fights with Buster Douglas and Holyfield, but still lost.

Tyson had a fair chin. I mean, Douglas and Holyfield were not big punchers. Holmes has one of the greatest chins of all time. #1 for Larry would not be outrageous, although it's not what I would pick.

 

Not sure I’d say that he soundly defeated Norton and the Shavers rematch. His fight with a 35 year old Norton was very close and the shavers knockdown might have ended badly for him If a different referee were in there. But at any rate good points. I myself am undecided who would win in a head to head scenario. Would be a tough fight.

 

I didn't mean that Larry whipped Norton, cuz he didn't. Norton vs. Holmes was the closest fight in boxing history. I just meant that Larry capped the fight off with a great and convincing finish.

 

He got the decision in a close fight.