saw a cool discussion in the scores thread about the best 80s heavyweights n I couldn't find an old thread on this so hey ho What are your top 10 heavys from the 80s? i think you be smart to have Holmes at 1 tyson at 2 and Witherspoon at 3 After that it's a pretty open field. Try not to include guys like Holyfield Lewis and Bowe who all fought in the 80a but weren't prime too please
You definitely got the hang of it. Holmes and Tyson are top 2 in any order you prefer (I prefer Larry), and Spoon's at 3, that is pretty much non-negotiable.
10. Carl Williams 9. Tony Tubbs 8. Greg Page 7. Pinklon Thomas 6. Mike Weaver 5. Trevor Berbick 4. Michael Dokes 3. Tim Witherspoon 2. Mike Tyson 1. Larry Holmes
#10. Trevor Berbick #9. Buster Douglas #8. Michael Spinks #7. Gerrie Coetzee #6. Greg Page #5. Mike Weaver #4. Pinklon Thomas #3. Tim Witherspoon #2. Mike Tyson #1. Larry Holmes If Douglas-Tyson was two and a half months before it did, then Douglas would be number two.
A mix of accomplishments and skillset. That's the best way I can describe. 1-5 are set in stone for me. 6-13 could be interchangeable. Tyson over Holmes. Mike beat Larry head-to-head plus everyone Larry lost to and/or avoided. And he was more dominant than Holmes. Oh and he unified all 3 belts. 1.) Mike Tyson 2.) Larry Holmes 3.) Tim Witherspoon 4.) Pinklon Thomas 5.) Michael Spinks 6.) Mike Weaver 7.) Tony Tucker 8.) Michael Dokes 9.) Trevor Berbick 10.) Carl Williams 11.) Tony Tubbs 12.) Greg Page 13.) Gerrie Coetzee
The 1980's had good talent. This was a decade where drugs and excessive weight made some fighters under achievers. I'm note sure exactly when alphabet politics started to get into the way. Maybe that started in the 1980's too, with the creation of the IBF.
Oddly Frank Bruno is left off these lists. Should be number three or four on most lists. 1) Mike Tyson 2) Larry Holmes 3) Evander Holyfield 4) Frank Bruno 5) Michael Spinks 6) Buster Douglas 7) Tim Witherspoon 8) Mike Weaver 9) Michael Dokes 10) Trevor Berbick
1. Tyson 2.Spinks 3. Holmes 4.Tucker 5. Holy 6. Berbick 7.Thomas 8.Witherspoon 9.Tubbs 10.James Smith
I'll give it a go, but I'll probably realize later I missed someone. So many of the guys from Tier 2 down traded wins and losses. The numbers could be shuffled without much argument. Tier 1: 1. Mike Tyson - The fact that Holmes had a pretty good career in the 90's elevates Tyson. Tyson cleaned out the top 10, pretty much. 2. Larry Holmes - Slowed down starting in 1983. Missed a few important names. But 78-82 he was spectacular. Tier 2: 3. Tim Witherspoon - Could've been more active. Almost docked for losing to Bonecrusher. 4. Michael Dokes - Only lost to Coetzee and Holyfield, but docked for his draw with Ocasio. Tier 3: 5. Michael Spinks - Only wins at heavyweight were Holmes and Cooney. But only loss was to Tyson. 6. Mike Weaver - Started out strong enough, but docked for losing to Smith, Ruddock, and DuPlooy 7. Gerrie Coetzee - Losing to Page and so quickly to Bruno hurts him. 8. Tony Tubbs - Not a lot of names on his eighties resume, but did beat Smith and Page. 9. Trevor Berbick - Has some surprising wins - Tate, Page, Thomas - but some surprising losses - Snipes, Gordon. 10. Evander Holyfield - He'd be higher, but fought only two years at heavyweight. 11. Pinklon Thomas - Looked like a million bucks until the Berbick fight. 12. Tony Tucker - Not enough big names on his record, but only lost to Tyson. 13. Buster Douglas - Had a nice run from 1986 on, even in losing to Tucker Tier 4: 14. Frank Bruno - Docked for losing to Bonecrusher and a little bit for losing to Witherspoon. 15. Carl Williams - Docked for having a shaky chin and losing to past-prime Weaver. 16. Greg Page - Should've done so much better. 17. Razor Ruddock - Only lost to Dave Jaco (ugh) in the eighties, beat Smith and Weaver, but that's it. 18. Bonecrusher Smith - Got his shot at Holmes, then went on a losing streak. Salvaged a career with the (lucky?) win over Witherspoon. 19. Gerry Cooney - So much potential, but docked for inactivity, no big-name prime wins, and being destroyed by Spinks. 20. Orlin Norris