2002 Tyson vs Lennox Lewis: 1 round fight

Tyson wins on points.

 

Tyson will come out like a rocket, Lewis will only be able to tie him up, so the fight goes to him.

 

I voted Lewis.
Tyson was a much faster starter, even years after his prime.
But Lennox obviously sometimes went on Search & Destroy missions, & very effectively.
He wss very smart-if it was all to be decided based upon 3 minutes max, he likely gets much more aggresive.
And only he has the size & ability to effectively tie the other guy up when necessary.

Put it another way, how much more do you think each man would have been physically able to ratchet up their performance in round 1?
It was no blow out as it was!

 

Lewis comes out like he did against Razor Ruddock and halts Tyson before the bell rings to end the round.

 

Tyson had no balance, greatly diminished speed. Was a mid-range slugger, that's it. I think Lennox beats him.

 

Tyson won round 1 of their actual fight.

 

All due respect Stevie, if that was the case why didn't Lewis do this in their actual fight?

 

Because he didn't want to take unnecessary risks therefore giving Tyson his best chance of winning, which was to get Lewis early. The gameplan was to establish respect early on and then business as usual. He may well have been able to bomb out Tyson in a round or two but he also would have opened up the odds of a Tyson victory.

It was the right gameplan. Tyson was still a dangerous puncher early on.

 

Does that apply to this condition? Who's gameplan and approach changes more with only one round?

 

I dont think Lennox would have changed all that much.

 

I think if Lennox knows he has three minutes to do it, he will go out and beat Tyson up for two minutes and 45 seconds at least. Tyson looked really bad in 2002. Franz Botha was beating his ass three years earlier. He was way past it and only there for a check in my opinion.

 

I think hell try get countered and end up clinching inside

 

In both the 1 round and 12 round scenarios Tyson remains the same clear and present danger albeit a short lived threat: his best and only chance being by way of an early round KO. After rounds 1-2, the balance of their actual fight was academic. I don’t see Lewis doing much different given just one round duration. So I give this one to Mikey.

 

He MAY have been able to bomb Tyson out in a round, but it's a huge stretch of the imagination to say he WOULD'VE done it for sure.

If it was a one round fight I have no idea who'd win tbh. I just voted for Tyson because of what actually happened in the first round of their fight.