'74 Ali vs '86 Tyson...

tyson was more powerful than frazier just look what prime tyson done to his opponents no way did frazier punch as hard :bbb

 

Duran Duran.... There's something you should know ! What you say about Tyson punching harder than Frazier,overall,is true. But Tyson would n't stand up to Ali's punishment as well as Joe did.

 

Your point is they all survived the distance, so how can Tyson stop Muhammad Ali.

Tillis was a cagey 40-pro-fight veteran who was floored and lost to a 19-pro-fight prospect. The story --a testament to how awesome a still-learning Tyson was looking-- was that Tillis survived. The fight shows how it isn't enough to be a tough boxer to beat Tyson. Tyson will stick with it and pound you to a loss on the cards.

Smith hugged and hugged, not too differently from Ali against Frazier in "Superfight II". He was reduced to a blip on the judges' tallies.

And Tony Tucker --another tough boxer-- survived but lost a wide decision. Again, Tyson at his best lost neither concentration nor stamina nor skills over the distance against a tall, talented, undefeated champion, with very high stakes involved. At the end, he actually expressed disappointment at only taking the decision.

The fact these guys survived is not nearly as important as what these fights show: Tyson was no lumbering brute relying solely on power, stumbling nearly out of gas by the final bell. Tyson showed up to knock you out if you came to fight, or become a workman and secure a decision if you came to run.

Three more things:

a) Joe Frazier was easier to hit than Mike Tyson.
b) Mike Tyson had better counterpunching capability than Joe Frazier.
c) Joe Frazier's main work was to the body, with the frequent left-hook lunge to the head; Mike Tyson equally punished the body and head from the opening bell and 6'3" men were perfectly within his range of action.

People say, "Tyson could never take the punishment Frazier did to get to Ali." That's just it: Tyson wouldn't need to simply take the searing jabs of FOTC (even though here we are talking Ali three years later.) Tyson was more evasive than Frazier and could counter better off a missed jab.

What does Ali do if his jab is missing and Tyson is lunging back with dangerous stuff every time? Ali clinches, of course, but this plan of "action" eventually puts Ali behind on the cards.

If Ali decides to duke it out, he is quickly going to be punished courtesy of Mike's left hooks.

Many times, a prime Ken Norton was simply overwhelming Ali with powerful stuff from both hands, to body and head. And a motivated Tyson had a way better offense than Ken Norton's. And, yes, Tyson would be looking to counter, in principle as Norton did.

Ali must be in the best possible condition for this fight. He must be as sharp as he can with the one-two. His strategy must be to punish Tyson's face, and clinch and move. Shoot, clinch. Shoot, move, angles, side to side, frustrate "Kong".

Rooney is shouting instructions, Tyson is pressing, scowling, shuffling, as he can't set on the sharpshooting Ali.

If Ali can cut or begin to swell Tyson's left eye, he may be home free, yet will still need to be careful till his hand is raised in victory.

If Ali can seize the momentum early and solidly, the fight may be his.

If Tyson can continually disrupt Ali early with superior firepower against the jabs and rights, Ali may have no choice but to face a long night and drop a decision.

 

Agreed, and well said.

 

74 ali!