"Berbick is down, and we have a new era in boxing!"

If i'm not mistaken, T. That call was actually a post fight one, it wasn't live.

 

Yes, the HBO analyst Barry Tompkins quoted this right after Berbick was counted out. "It's over. That's all. And we...have a new era...in boxing." One of the most memorable lines for me.

 

After the moribund Holmes reign and various SRL retirements, he put excitement back in the division and back in boxing. He captured the imagination of the public beyond boxing. And his brilliance in the ring cast a very long shadow over the sport.

 

Prime Ruddocks knocks him out.

 

I guess that the least that you can give him, is that whether he was good for the sport or not, he put it on the map.

It is a bit like talking about Jack Johnsons legacy. You can debate whether or not he was good for the sport, but he became a figure bigger than the sport.

 

great thread mate.

I can only speak for myself, and tbh Tyson is probably my favourite man on the planet. I would clean his shoes if I saw him in person.

In terms of will his legend grow? Are you asking in terms of purely his boxing greatness? It can't get any more overrated than it already has been can it?

 

I don't think Tyson is going to have an olympic torch moment mate, political correctness and time correlate in a positive fashion, therefore by the time Tyson would be at a point wherein you and I as boxing fans would think him ready for and deserving of his olympic torch moment, if it happened there would be outrage. Masses of people think of him as a scumbag and are stubborn as **** on the matter. It definitely won't happen. **** them anyway.

 

Ali is seen as an icon in the sense of standing up for his rights and for the rights of his people. Yes there were a lot of people, mainly white who despised him years ago and looked at him with disdain, and as you say, time has changed the minds of those people and their effective descendants.

Now be totally honest, is that going to happen for Tyson? The only way it could happen is if there is a mass opinion on him surrounding how he was exploited by leeches, an 'oh it wasn't his fault' opinion, by MASSES of people, which would be basically a pitty movement. I doubt it to no end.

As I say though, from a personal perspective let me say this- **** them.

Mike Tyson is a hero to me.

 

He doesn't need the approval of some overly judgemental ****s imo anyway, and I sincerely hope he isn't mentally torturing himself seeking for that, he probably is though

anyway

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Tyson will always have negative issues and opinions stapled to his name, that will never change in the eyes of the general public imo

"No-one could sell a fight like me" -Mike Tyson

I think this quote is very true and a point that many people dont recognise. Tyson had his image and he sold it like no other, where the image stopped and reality began i cant really say. This is why a shot to **** Tyson was still an incredibly huge draw till the end of his career, by which time he was clearly not the same kid from the eighties.

 

1980s Athlete of the Decade!

Okay, that's Gretzky. Probably followed by Montana or Magic.

Nonetheless, he was a larger than life-and-sport icon who transcended his era. In the ring, one can't deny his accomplishments: He closed out the decade 37-0 w/ 33 KO (10-0 in title fights), youngest heavyweight champion of all-time, 9 title defenses (8 as WBC/WBA, 6 as World), took part in two HW title fights in which both fighters entered the ring undefeated (winning both), individually unified the three fragmented titles and has a stellar argument as being the No. 1 pound-for-pound fighter in the world from 1986-89, including being ranked as such on the inaugural 1989 Ring ratings. Was successful in regaining two of his titles upon return from a four-year layoff and had a second top-out (aside from pre-douglas) of 45-1-0 (41 KO) ring record. He's also 3rd all-time in first round KOs within the division. An all-time H2H monster that has the power and speed to compare to any ATG heavyweight in history.