How does this play out? Does Tunny fend Tyson off with a few hairy moments en route to a close UD or Does Mike snuff a petrified Tunney after a few well placed whacks to the head and body (ala Michael Spinks)
I think Tyson would catch up to the Marine at some point ,target the body to slow down those quick feet,and take him out late.
Tunney is a great fighter. But, prime Tyson steamrolls him. Prime Tunney has a good chance of beating Tyson from the Lennox Lewis fight on.
Tyson absolutely wrecks Tunney in under 90 seconds. Tunney never fought a decent prime heavyweight, never even fought a black man. Worlds apart in an absolute sense.
Man, I kinda like Tunney. I don't think his chances are zero at all. That's not to say I think they are high, either.
This has nothing to do with white/black ... Tunney was a true great fighter .. at 189 he was simply too small for Tyson ...
For the first 2 rounds, Tunney does well with his evasive maneuvers, footwork, and high IQ boxing. He lands the jab darting in and out and never remains in one spot for more than 2 seconds. This pace is impossible to keep up, especially because Tyson manages to cut the ring off multiple times and lands vicious body shots anytime he corners the fighting marine. By round 3, Tunney has visibly slowed down with nasty red welts on his sides and abdomen from all the brutal body blows. Tunney is breathing hard, nervous, and somewhat sluggish while Tyson barely has any signs of damage at all. During an exchange, Tyson lands a powerful hook to the body and Tunney goes down. He barely makes it up at the count of 8. He tries to run but his legs are completely gone from all the punishment. Tunney tries to land some of his famed straight right hands but they have zero effect on "iron" Mike. Tunney clinches desperately but is separated by the ref. He clinches again. This time Tyson makes some room and lands his signature uppercut making Tunney's jaw point towards the ceiling as his eyes roll back. Tunney lands face first onto the canvas and the ref doesn't bother with a count as his team leaps over the ropes to turn him over and remove his mouthpiece. Tyson KO round 3.
Tunney’s evasive skills and movement are one thing and, just in their own right, couldn’t be sufficiently maintained to avoid Mike for a whole fight anyway - particularly if Tyson initially targets and weakens the body - an obvious, priority strategy while Gene’s head is temporarily unavailable in the very early stages. Otherwise, to beat Tyson you also need a punch to keep him honest - I can’t see any punch from Gene giving Tyson any cause to hesitate or arrest Mike’s pursuit. I see Mike literally walking through Gene’s punches -Mike’s only challenge being to track down and catch The Fighting Marine. The only question might be: how long can Gene last? I would guess 3 rounds tops also.
