Equivalent upset today as Tyson-Douglas

Japan?
Man they hosted the biggest upset of the century and from what i remember it was quiet as **** in there.
I personally thought the crowds lack of enthusiasm ruined it a bit..
I imagine if that happened in the USA or something the crowd would've gone crazy

thats just me though..

 

The odds were that high because everyone though that Tyson was unbeatable, and Douglas was ****.

Douglas wasn't **** - just was lazy and not often in shape. He was for that fight though.

McCall has said all along he told Tyson to watch out for Douglas, because he was no mug. Douglas had some pretty good skills, a good jab, and a reasonable punch.

There isn't a fighter alive today that is thought to be as unbeatable as Tyson was back then. Not even Floyd.

Honestly, I think Douglas would be a top 10 fighter if in todays division, if not higher. Especially if this version of Shannon Briggs is rated 9 by the WBC.

 

Speaking of ratings, Douglas was ranked in the top 10 by Ring in their year-end ratings 3 out of the prior 4 years to facing Tyson, coming in at #9 in 1988 and #7 in 1989 and 1986. He was a top 10 fighter when he fought Tyson. I don't think it's a stretch at all to say he'd be a top 10 fighter in today's division given that. I think sometimes people downplay Buster to make him sound alot worse than he really was at the time in order to make it out to be that much larger of an upset. But the dude would still be at least solid contender level at his best no matter the era IMO.

 

Nothing that can compare at the moment.

 

I didn't know of those ratings, but I knew he was no mug. One of many guys in that generation that had plenty of skills, but no motivation or professionalism.

That's a little bit different today, where most have no skills as well as no motivation or professionalism.

I knew he'd had title shots before, was in or around the top 10, and guys like McCall etc all rated him, and he'd beaten some half decent fighters.


I can remember watching an All Blacks game on the box in NZ(I think it was. Either them or the rugby league side), and the TV company putting a ticker tape across the bottom of the screen (which they barely ever did back then......Breaking News....Mike Tyson KO'D by Buster Douglas in Japan....More to follow"). It was just unbelievable that Tyson could lose back then, and was huge news. I can't see them doing anything like that in countries like NZ or Australia now. Those types of breaking news back then were usually saved for earthquakes or mass shootings!!!!!! That's how big Tyson was world wide.

 

There is no remotely feasible match-up to be made right now that could produce an upset anything like Tyson-Douglas if the underdog won.

You'd have to be talking about like a Klitschko getting beaten by Rob Calloway, or Mayweather getting beaten by Dmitry Salita.

Any match that could produce such an upset is simply unrealistic and wouldn't ever be made.

 

Rick Hatton comes out of retirement and beats PBF by KO in the 10th.

 

Derrick freaking Rossy is in the WBC top ten! atsch

Prime Buster would blow out Briggs and Rossy on the same night. It wouldn't even need to be the Tokyo version, either.

 

If Malinaggi Ko'd Pacquiao

 

I think that's what it tells me more than anything else...it wasn't that Douglas was viewed as a tomato can, it was that Tyson was looked at as a boxing demi-god. Mike was the first guy since Ali, and one of only 4 heavyweights in history that have, in my opinion, transcended the sport of boxing to the point where whatever they did had the world's attention and were true superstars by any measure- the other two being Joe Louis and Jack Dempsey. Those four weren't just immensely popular themselves, they were such luminaries that they created interest in the sport from people who otherwise couldn't have cared less. That's the definition of stardom.

Those guys were so popular that they validated the careers of whoever they fought, especially if they happened to get beat- even Joe Blow who didn't know **** about boxing knew Evander Holyfield was great, for example. Why? Because he beat Mike Tyson, and Tyson was already legendary.

It's crazy when you think about how many men made their careers and made their millions off the back of Mike because of that level of superstardom. I firmly believe that it wasn't just Mike's opponents and entourage he made millions for, but many people involved in heavyweight boxing at that time made more money because of the interest he brought to the division.

With all due respect to the other 90's boxers, the only reason that era is held in such high regard is because of one man- Mike Tyson. Eliminate him from the equation, and not only would the other household heavyweight names of that decade not be as known and not have made the money they did, but the decade itself would be looked at in a completely different light. It's crazy the difference one fighter can make in boxing if he's special enough and in the right place at the right time.

 

Since I've gone pretty off topic, here's my vote...it would take something like Holyfield today knocking out Wlad, which I'd consider as big or bigger of a boxing upset with the benefit of hindsight. Matthew Hatton beating Mayweather would surpass it.

Even then, the odds would never get to what they were in Douglas-Tyson. From a bookie standpoint, I agree with IB- the fights that could replicate those odds would either never get made or the sportsbooks would never put a money line on it.

 

Barrett knocking down Tua?

 

JMM shutting out and KOing Floyd in the 12th.

That woulda been such a celebration in Mexico tho :yep

 

How big of an underdog was Rahman when he KO'd Lennox?

 

Maybe if Kaizer Mabuza beat Manny Pacquiao