Mike Tyson on heavyweight greats...

Yea but thats the thing..he watches dempsey willard...and sees that first round.....and its ALL HE SAW of dempsey up to that point..and he goes on about how shitty dempsey looks and wild. But then if you watch later he actually sees some more of dempsey (dempsey tunney...when dempsey is old...but not going for the kill in as total a way) and really ends up givng dempsey allot more respect. So cleary when he saw Dempsey the first time he hadnt ever seen any other footage to put dempsey-willard into perspective.

 

I have the entire VHS tape of Tyson and the Heavyweights...

Although I was never a huge fan of Tyson the fighter,I have give it to him for his historical knowledge....

 

yeah, i've got one of those vids.it shows owen moran and jack kid berg i think, both of whom mike was in awe of.

 

True. Like he often was, he was a bit rash on this occassion also. But, as you point it, he ends up giving him more respect. And also - he marvels at how tough guys like Johnson and Dempsey were, under how tough conditions and rule-sets they fought and isn't really sure he would cope himself.

 

As for Tyson, it's a pleasure to hear him speak about boxing. Thing is, he seems intelligent and thoughtful in general nowadays. Compare with Lewis who mostly came off as a bit smug in his latest interview. Tyson and Keane are the two former athletes I really enjoy seeing in interviews. Funny, 'cause I disliked both when they were active.

 

Well said! It seems to me that Ali too often gets a pass for saying some crass disgusting things. I can't imagine Patterson would have ever insulted a deceased ex-champ either.

 

i like listening to any former fighter on the tv.as for football ruud gullit is better than any of the british players.
robbie savage is the worst and seems to have the IQ of a chisel

 

Tyson had the advantage of Cus Dmato and Jacobs (who had the largest collection of films) Mike has knowledge and patterned himself after Dempsey from the black shoes, trunks and shaved sides and aggression...Dempsey was raw aggression and hard hardness never seen up to that point and not until the cool assassin combination punching Joe Louis was such killer instinct displayed...then Marciano, Liston,Frazier, Foreman, then Tyson all loved the smell of blood but a few were faint of heart when it was there own blood

 

im surprised he gave tunney so much respect out of all of those fighters

 

mike tyson a scholar,now youdon't hear that said everyday,lol

 

In the Ali video he does say demspey would have given him a hard fight (after seeing Dempsey Tunney). He also says that Louis was the second best heavy after himself...but that due to stylistic reasons, dempsey and marciano would have given him harder fights. He even admits Rocky "might have won" more credit then many Ali fans would give the Rock today. Once you get past Ali's bluster...and once he sees more footage, he becomes much more sensible.

 

The thing with Rocky might have won, one must rember that for a few weeks or so, both share a ring with each other, so Ali got to tell what Marciano was all about first hand in these sparing sessons.

 

yea..they say after those sessions for the movie ali was a bit a shock up...he had to have been thinking "could I have handled this ****ing guy when he was 25"

thing about Louis was ali felt he was the second best heavyweight...but he felt he would beat him easier then he would dempsey or Marciano..because of what he saw as louise slower feet.

 

well it kind of makes sense...tunney was really the prototype of ali at heavyweight.....

people often give Jack Johnson that mantle...and in social and personality ways....its true..but stylistically...as a boxer..its tunney.