How many heavyweights had faster hands than tyson?.

smoking joe had much faster hands than he's given credit for. mostly because he' most known for fighting ali whose hands were the faster.
i would match joe f. against floyd and mike in terms of hand speed and joe wins that imo. ofcourse when mike was at his prime which was fleeting, he would take the edge. depends on when in their careers, but there is no question all fighters at their peak, ali was the fastest.

 

I'd say maybe Ali & Patterson, but even then it might be level pegging. Tyson's handspeed was brilliant, but it was also his footspeed that was something special, which was an asset he lost after prison.

A perfect example of his footspeed would be against Tyrell Biggs. After a round, Tyson was on Biggs, had cut off the ring, was able to out manouvere his opponent.

I will say that NO HW in history has possessed the unique combination of power combined with speed to the advanced extent that a peak Tyson had it!