How good was Tyson in 96

About 80% of his prime (1986-1989 ) punching power still intact...

 

He fought squared up. His defense wasn't near what it was at his peak. He wasn't as good at combination punching as in his prime. He retained very good one punch power and a solid chin.

I'd say he was about 60% of what he was in his 1986-late 1988 absolute prime.

 

He still had speed and power. It would take a disciplined performance to beat him. A few top guys wouldn't have been to do it even with discipline (ie Moorer) and there were a couple of less than top guys who might have out toughed him (Tua, McCall).
In short, still a dangerous and risky fight for anyone.

 

A clear bit better than he what is said nowadays. He was impressive and looked sharp against Bruno. McNeely said very little. He looked bad against Mathis until he decided to take it seriously and immediately knocked him out.

 

Let's not forget Holyfield wasn't prime either, those wars certainly took something out of him.

 

I believe Tyson was rejuvenated in prison when the checks were coming in from Don King guaranteeing him upwards to $30 million a fight. He trained like a demon for McNeeley but you could definitely tell his timing, balance and overall fluidity was off. He was a lot more stagnant but his speed and power were there for sure. McNeeley was even pushing him back and despite the fight ending in the 1st round there was a lot of rust on Iron Mike.

The Mathis fight was very telling. Tyson couldn't land anything. The balance and timing still weren't there but once he landed in the 3rd his power bailed him out. I thought he wasn't ready to step up against Bruno but I was wrong. Then the Seldon "fight" wasn't much...well, let's leave it at that.

Tyson looked like he trained harder for Seldon than he did for Holyfield. His confidence levels were high, repeat, were high. But he was in for that rude awakening after only 8 rounds of fighting since prison weren't going to prepare him.

Anyways, I actually felt Tyson was better prepared in '95 than he was in '96. Holyfield beat his azz and sent him back down to earth. Would've liked to see Mike getting more rounds in the bank, but with Jay Bright lacking in the training department, I'm not so sure how good tyson was going to be without a real trainer in his corner.

 

He wasn't shot back then according to anyone. It is only in retrospect that he became shot because he was such a popular and legendary figure.

 

Regarding Holyfield, he based his entire career's worth on beating Tyson. That 30 For 30 special "Chasing Tyson" on ESPN the other night told the basics. Nothing new to me but it was a clear cut documentary showcasing Holyfield's drive and determination to get that respect he felt he deserved.

Holyfield had a better game plan going into the fight. Tommy Brooks laid out a plan that was going to work with this version of Holyfield. Not so sure Holyfield prevails in their '91 fight because while Tyson was rotting in prison Holyfield was busy fighting Holmes, Bowe, Stewart, Bowe again, Moorer, Mercer and Bowe a third time. BIG fight experience right there.

Holyfield had a lot left. So did Tyson. But Holyfield was better prepared and fought the smartest fight of his life. For most of his pro career he studied Tyson's style, his rhythms, and how Tyson would bend at the knees to get power before launching his left hook.

 

I agree. All the bad habits Tyson had in his prime that were polished when Cus and Rooney were around had become magnified after prison. Squaring up when throwing lead left hooks were being worked overtime with Jay Bright in his corner. Bad habits that were exploited by Mathis, even. Tyson was becoming predictable.

 

Physically he was still in his prime, so in terms of speed and power he was as good as ever.

But from a technical stand point he had declined. His head movement was gone, he rarely threw more than 2 shots consecutively, so his combinations were no longer there.

Tyson's style at his peak was one that required everything to be in place for it to be effective and it was physically very demanding which is why you see nobody else try and emulate the style. He used his head movement to make opponents miss and would then counter which when combined with his speed and power made him very dangerous. By 96 he would simply just try and get in range and beat you to the punch, the bobbing and weaving and counter punching were gone.

But having said that he was still a damn good fighter in 96. Look what he did to Golota in 2000, he busted him up, broke his cheek bone, fractured 2 vertebrae and gave him a concussion. In 96 only Holyfield and Lewis were better as by 96 Bowe was shot or close to it.

 

he had more left than holyfield at that point, being well preserved

 

Check out his footwork.

Especially in the Holyfield fight, It was awful.

Crossing his feet, the second biggest no no in boxing training.

 

I think he'd done enough to prove himself the best HW in the world prior to the beating put on him by Holyfield.