Lennox Lewis would always have brutalized Tyson.

if lewis was that good how come he was having trouble against bruno, bruno was winning on the cards if he wasnt for brunos jaw he wud have beaten lewis whilst tyson decimated bruno not once but twice

 

This is a troll thread that should be locked up and thrown away.

 

prime tyson would have ate lewis and his future kids for lunch and shitted them out for dinner..that size weight **** held nothing when u had a man that could punch as fast as manny pac and hit as hard as prime george foreman...his defense was elite before he started acting like an animal with don king...tyson by 3rd blowout

 

No way, Prime Tyson would have to much speed and power for Lewis to deal with. Lewis could not keep Mike off for 12 rounds, he wouldn't just follow Lennox around like Tua did, he would be bringing the fight to Lewis hard all night until he caught him and ended it. Lewis in his prime would have been one of if not the toughest fight in Tysons career, but I just can't see him being able to survive with Tyson, the fight would look like Lewis-Mercer but Mike was faster and hit harder and he would finish Lewis.. Tyson ko6!!

 

I always felt that prime Lewis would beat prime Tyson, but the OP has put his argument forward so badly that i'm starting to doubt it!

 

you make good points as to why you belive that tyson could win. I never stated tyson couldnt win but if I could I would put down considerable money on Lewis to win while both men were in thier primes.

I respect what your oppinion Caelum, but I personally belive that the tyson in tokyo was very similar ability wise to the best tyson that gathered up belts and unified them.

Lennox lewis vs Mike tyson was a matchup in thier primes where both guys would come in with a strong desire to win. using his lab lewis is able to land on tyson with powerful right hands. setting it up with jabs (pawing or otherwise) I think lewis would be able to feel out the right uppercut. he would tie tyson up when in close. being the much bigger guy his tieups constant tieups would frustrate tyson. lewis wouldnt tire his plan would be to slow down tyson. then it would be easier to pick mike apart. Late Ko or decision victory for lennox lewis.

I think tyson could break down mentaly. In the tillis fight (1986) I senced frustration in him also in the frank bruno fight in 1989 and of course the fight with douglas in 1990. In hindsight Tyson did not look invincible in these fights.

Tyson fans give him a plethora of excuses for looking bad or for losing. did tyson ever beat a fighter equal to the caliber of Lewis when in their prime?

Lewis beat a fighter of tysons caliber in holyfield. tyson lost to the best he faced in his own weight division. He gets a pass everytime. maybe things were not going well for him at the time he lost his belt in tokyo. But I believe a fighter should be judged for when its bright clear and sunny, as well as when its cold and raining. otherwise we get to hear the "my tummie hurt" excuses that makes it impossible to ever give any fighter credit for wins or responsibilities for thier losses.

Caelum, not many in this thread agree with me. thats fine, I just dont think tyson can handle lennox lewis's power, size, and skillset.

 

lewis could never work for a full 3 minutes of a round. big flaw.

 

I'm not saying you are wrong. I think Lewis could win this as well depending on which Lewis we take. And I would look for a decision win more than a KO win. It's more likely Tyson would get the KO than Lewis.
And it would be interesting to see what a rematch would be like if Lewis were to lose the first.

His jab is still overrated, especially if going up against a trained Tyson. Larry Holmes even ripped on Lewis jab.

The problem with the Tillis fight was that you are still looking at a 19 year old fighter who was still gaining experience. He had yet to go past 6 rounds and that weighed heavily on his mind. In his next fight, against Green, he looked different. Looked better. Looked more confident.
Even down the road, when asked about a possible rematch with Tillis, Tyson, and yes it's just his opinion, but he felt he would KO Tillis this time around if it came to be because he was a better fighter now.

Lewis beat a past prime Holyfield and didn't look so hot in the rematch.
Bowe beat Holyfield, a prime Holyfield, more impressive than Lewis...by far.

Mercer gave Lewis fits and went the distance.
Lewis isn't perfect either.

One other thing about Tyson that can be mentioned is that he knows how to pick apart the body with precise shots at the right time. Big fighters can be worn down because of it. And it makes them think twice with what to throw.

True, he never fought someone as highly regarded as Lewis became, although Tucker wasn't so bad given his credentials up to that point.
On that note, who did Lewis ever face on the level of a peak Tyson?

He doesn't get a pass for losing to Douglas or anybody else. That's on him. He messed up. But to say that was the same fighter that was training during the time of Berbick to Spinks, with Rooney, when motivated, is debatable, is it not?
Especially when you are getting tagged up in sparring by Trevor Berbick, a man Tyson destroyed for the title. Difference: one was active, prepared properly, and motivated to fight. The other, ill-prepared and not motivated to fight.
And then you want to compare a Post-Prison Tyson who is not the same both mentally and physically to the Rooney Trained version who was active, motivated, fit to fight, and had a game-plan going into each fight along with that trainer to guide him through fights.

Tyson's fault for the mistakes he made and his losses? Absolutely.
But was any version of Tyson post-Rooney, post Spinks, better than the one Rooney was training from Berbick to Spinks? I think not.


Bruno fight:
Who trained Tyson for this fight?
Who came up with a game-plan for this fight?

When is Tyson usually frustrated and when he is, who is there to help guide him out of it...like against Tucker?

What did Tyson say in the Tyson/Bruno post-fight press-conference {with all the reporters asking questions} about that fight with Bruno?

How did Bruno vs. Lewis go?
How did Tyson vs. Bruno go?




Any way, it would be a good fight. Size and Strength of Lewis is something to look at. Intelligence is something to look at. But there are other factors as well. Tyson would have to do a lot of damage early to Lewis...not just physical damage, but mentally take Lewis off his game of controlling the fight. Make him more unsure since he is already a cautious fighter.
One of my favorite fights with Lewis was against Mercer. In that fight, he was hurt on occasion and showed heart and the ability to fight right back. He had that fight in him. That would make it a great match. Also, check out Mercer landing the Jab on Lewis. Lewis was also doing things in that fight that Tyson could have taken advantage of. Look for example how Lewis was trying to avoid punches and where his head and eyes were going. Of course, same can be said about fights that Tyson had that Lewis could take advantage of.
I've always thought this was an interesting match-up...kind of like wanting to see a peak Bowe vs. Tyson...and would hope to see a best out of 3 to see what happens.

 

He had a good chin, not a great chin that could stand next to some other we can talk about. Certainly not what people would call "Iron."

Besides getting KTFO with single punches by arguably lesser punchers than Tyson, slower as well, he has been stunned numerous times. You even see it in that video.
Go watch the Mercer fight over as well.

Lewis never fought someone like Tyson with that speed, combination ability, head-movement, etc.
Same can be said with Tyson on Lewis.
Some comparable fights a bit but not quite the same.

I think both can hurt each other. Lewis specifically with his uppercut because it's a punch Tyson sometimes can't quite see if thrown right and at the right time. And Tyson, whatever he throws can hurt.

What you would certainly have with Lewis would be a well prepared fighter who wouldn't fight stupid against Tyson. Even against a shot Tyson he came prepared.

Even a top level chin as well can be hurt. Look at your avatar and go watch his fights. Always susceptible to the right-hand. And because his defense lacked, he could be tagged clean if you can somehow get passed his offense.

No shame in getting hurt. These are big powerful fighters. **** hurts when hit.

 

:rofl:rofl:rofl:rofl:rofl

This is a joke, right?

 

Not a joke no, you're just a ****ing idiot.

 

There are two questions that I could ask myself as a result of this thread...

Would the version of Lennox Lewis who fought in 1996 have defeated the version of Tyson who fought at that time?

I would be inclined to say yes. Lewis was probably as hungry and as motivated as he was ever going to be at that point, and he most certainly would have been focused for a fight with Tyson. Even though LL didn't have what I would call an iron jaw, I think it was probably good enough to withstand single shots that Tyson would throw and land at that time. So Lewis probably does do a similar number to Tyson around this time period...

But does the best version of Lewis beat the best version of Tyson?

He certainly could, because you just can't discount someone with the power, intelligence, and jab that he possessed. Tucker did have his moments against Tyson, and I think Lewis (who was a better version of the same fighter) could have even more.If he fully capitalizes on those moments, he was always capable of taking Tyson out of there.

Do I think that this is a given, like the thread starter? Not at all. But it's not out of the realm of possibilty.

 

Hard fight to call. It's basically a pick 'em fight. Would Tyson's speed and bobbing style and combinations get to Lewis and do some serious damage, or could Lewis overcome this and use his power and size to either hurt or wear Tyson out.

While I don't know who would win, I think when Lewis did fight Tyson he used almost a perfect strategy to win that fight. He fought like the big guy he is and when Tyson did get inside, he was punished for his efforts with upper cuts and just basically being manhandled, and Lewis wasn't above pushing Tyson back to make sure he was punished for trying to get inside.

That said a prime Tyson on the inside would likely dish out a fair amount of punishment himself.

 

You may want to review some film on Tyson. Please check out his fights with Berbick, Tucker, Holmes, Bruno and Ruddock and then maybe you'll understand just how good this guy was when he was focused inside and outside of the ring. With Rooney in his corner, he was the perfect storm for "taller" heavyweights and , while Lewis would certainly be a test even for a prime Tyson, Lennox would be no different.