What was Buster Douglas truly capable of..?

No he shouldn't. Buster was fully aware and would have gotten up quicker if he needed to. And Douglas was fighting sick on antibiotics that night, so it negates the partying excuse.

 

He was dominating the tough and durable Tucker behind his jab before abruptly gassing. He closes the deal with first rate conditioning. "Fatigue makes cowards of us all" ~ Vince Lombardi. He'd have to have been able to pump that jab for 12 rounds.

 

Was it discipline that made him fall apart against Tucker?

Was it discipline that made him quit in the second round against Holyfield?

Was it discipline that made him take the easy way out against Louis Monaco?

Even against Tyson, he wallowed on the floor and looked almost ready to feign being knocked out.

Douglas fought like a guy whose best career option was boxing, but didn’t really want to be there.

 

I agree and I've said this a few times aswell it's myth that Douglas only turned up for 1 night vs Tyson.

His form leading up to the Tyson fight was the same Douglas that turned up vs Tyson.

It's just Douglas had it all his own way vs Tyson outside of the knockdown and even then he fought with his emotions to actually get up.

If Douglas was in more of a fight and questions were asked about his heart. Then Tokyo Douglas could quit again I think people forget Tokyo Douglas is the same Douglas from 1986-1990.

 

His dad fought Matthew Saad Muhammad. Muhammad stopped him.

 

I think you're thinking of Billy Douglas (Buster's dad).

 

I feel like there always excuses for Tyson loses. There number other fighters who lost and never do we get the same excuses, yet where doing the same things as Tyson when they lost.

I mean when did Tyson ever beat anyone when what he was doing was not working? Tyson is a beast, but when did he ever really have a plan b? He was a great hammer, but when his hammer was not working, he basically lost every time. Feels like he gets far too much of a pass, there always an excuse, but those same excuses are never given for numerous other fighters, but for Tyson they are always accepted. Tyson to me is extremely dominant. A guy who will make most look far inferior even compared to other all time greats. He basically the greatest front runner ever, but when has he ever shown to adjust when things are not going his way?

 

If you repeatedly jump over a 7-foot bar and suddenly can't clear a 6-foot bar, it means something's wrong with you. Simple.

Even when Tyson was dominating, there were complaints that he wasn't training like a champion. Even Teddy Atlas, who hated him, claimed Tyson wouldn't lose to anyone but himself. Before the fight in Tokyo, an article appeared in the New York Times – Tyson was sabotaging his own training. It's so obvious. If Douglas was that good, he should have been champion, not Tyson. And that was in 1983 or 1984, a year or two after he started his career. He should never have lost to someone like Ferguson or Savarese.

Tyson doesn't need excuses. His life was so crazy that it's a joke that he stayed in the game this long. Alcoholic, drug addict, sex addict, treated with psychotropic drugs for many years, with depression and anxiety states... choose a reason or accept that he simply did not train for Douglas as Douglas trained for him

 

Definitely winnable and FUN fights! Had he came in better shape and maybe CLOSE to as motivated (That was a once in a lifetime fight as far as motivation) as he was against Tyson… he could’ve probably outboxed Evander I feel. I don’t know… would’ve been close either way. That jab was almost as nasty as Bowe’s. And his right hand was serious too. Probably 60/40 Holyfield honestly.

The Duke would’ve been interesting! Tommy would’ve absolutely treated that one as serious as the Foreman fight I believe. And say what you want about Morrison… when motivated and ready… he was as dangerous as they come. Fun fight! And Douglas was vulnerable to big punchers either way. Also Tommy’s body attack would’ve been an issue for Buster I feel. 50/50

Douglas probably would outbox Mercer with some scary moments here and there. I really don’t envision him knocking him out though. Probably an 8 rounds to 4 type win. But Douglas would have to be at his absolute best though. Otherwise he gets caught and mauled.

And by ‘Michael Morrison’ I’m guessing you meant Michael Moorer? Unless The Duke had a up and coming brother I never knew about!

Yeah Moorer would’ve been interesting too. Dangerous fight for Douglas with that laser right jab that was probably Moorer’s best weapon. He could actually hurt guys with that alone. 50/50

 

I don't know if he ever would have gotten by Holyfield. I think he did everyone a disservice by coming in out of shape and laying down. If he performed better maybe the fire would have stayed burning and he fights another big name. I think there is a lot of truth to the earlier post about having to get back in line and not being motivated to go back up the ladder.

Say he beats Holyfield and Tyson goes back to jail before a rematch is made, could he beat Bowe? I don't think he does

 

There's a missing element here. Douglas was a great athlete. He was big, quick, coordinated, good skills, great jab, and solid power. If you wanted to build a perfect heavyweight from a physical standpoint you couldn't improve on Buster that much.

The missing element was James boxed because of his dad. He would've probably preferred going to the park and play ball. His dad wasn't a normal guy. He was Dynamite Douglas. He fit right in and was cut from the same cloth as those Philly middleweights he brawled with.

When James quit against Tucker that was very disappointing. He was clearly a better boxer than Tony but he didn't need to win.

What changed?
His mother died.
His mom was telling everyone all her friends her son was gonna beat Mike Tyson. There was nothing Mike Tyson couldve done that nite to escape a beating. The tragedy of his mother's passing gave Bus what he was missing.

 

He took Mike Tyson's best punch square on the chin, got up and cameback pummeled him into submission.
That night he was a fighter, other nights the mentality was totally different.

 

My man

 

Buster was 9-1 his previous 10 fights spanning almost 5 years. Beat 3 world champions. Lost a close fight to an undefeated fighter who won 4 rounds against Tyson with a broken hand. He has consistancy issues. Because he wasn't motivated enough.

It sounds like a heartwarming story but its really ****ing insulting.