Better Win - Schemling beating Louis or Buster beating Tyson

Douglas . At the time Tyson had aura of invincibility. The hype was
unbelievable.

 

Well Louis wasn't even the champion then so definitely Douglas.

 

yes, Louis was a rising star at the time and Schemling a former champion but I think they were the top two contenders of the day. Douglas was considered a 42-1 no-hoper for just another routine defence by Tyson.

 

On paper, Douglas beating Tyson.

In practice, Schmeling beating Louis.

 

Good question.

The Douglas victory was by far a bigger underdog upset.
But Schmeling beat the soon to be 12 year champion, and #1-2 all time HWs.

I guess it's how you define better win.
The Schmeling victory over Louis to me seems more important and prestigious.
But he had a much better chance to beat Louis than Douglas did Tyson, at least in the boxing worlds eyes.

 

Bingo.
Tyson was an accomplished champion at the time. So the astonishment with his defeat was much greater.

 

The better quality win os Schmeling over Louis. It's the highest quality win in the division's history.
Louis would retire at 60-1 before his comeback to pay off the IRS. 60-1 with the loss avenged. But that loss came at the hands of Schmeling. Both are tremendous victories and Douglas is close, but Tyson didn't accomplish and wasn't as good as Louis after his loss. (Or before).

 

Perhaps people are forgetting that Joe Louis had the same aura of invincibility in 1936 as Tyson had in 1990.
Despite not holding the championship yet, Louis was considered already proven as the world's best fighter. He'd already destroyed Max Baer and Primo Carnera and several other top 10 contenders. He was regarded as the perfect fighting machine. The only reason he wasn't champ yet was because Jimmy Braddock was sat on the title, enjoying it and delaying the inevitable.

 

With retrospect, Schmeling's win is better because Louis didn't lose again for 14 years, and after coming out of retirement.
Long Count's post above spells out the standing of that win in terms of historical record.

Of course, Douglas's win over Tyson is up there somewhere too. Massive win.

 

Louis for me. Douglas showed a lot of Tyson s flaws and he never actually improved from then on. He never went back to the spinks type destroyer. Where as schmeling defeated a young Louis, who would not suffer another loss for 14 years, and went on improving. So maxs win seems the more impressive victory.

 

Schmeling in retrospect, Douglas on the day. To my generation anyway.

 

Douglas the 42-1 underdog shows where Douglas stood in the Grand scheme Schmeling was always consistently good