"If I were in top condition, Mike Tyson wouldn't have had a chance"- Larry Holmes

A young focused Iron Mike would always have his number. Too fast and too good at closing distance while avoiding shots. Cus taught him what is really the only successful style for a short pressure fighter and Tyson mastered it. Holmes for all his fantastic jabbing, would not be able to keep him outside. Old Mike however is pretty useless against Larry (and most tall mobile fighters with a good jab) because he lost the foot speed and most of the upper body movement. It would be Lennox all over again but without the early fear for his chin.

 

Except that prime for prime, we never saw Tyson stand up to a great champion.

Frazier proved in the fight of the century he could take a licking and still come back.

Tyson always took the least resistance path to the belt, in true bully fashion.
Being the greatest 6 rds fighter doesn't make one a legend.

 

I don't disagree with a prime Tyson always having a prime Holmes number. But why is a Prime Ali or any version of Ali favored over a Prime Tyson but a Prime Tyson is favored over a Prime Holmes given that Ali and Holmes were the same kind of fighters?

Strange double standards.

 

As for the actual fight at the time. Tyson was around since 1985 and Holmes always knew he would face him one day. Holmes is too proud to not come into a fight in shape and to train the best he can. He had a purpose for the actual fight in 1988, he kept talking about how one dimensional Tyson was, how he was going to expose him taking him into the later rounds, he wanted to win back the heavyweight championship and to be regarded as the best fighter of the 80's.

It is very convenient for him to make excuses, i wasn't in shape, i was rusty, Tyson got lucky e.t.c. Styles make fights and Tyson being the excellent finisher that Holmes has never ever faced before will always have the edge.

 

Holmes has been holding in a Tyson shaped turd since 1988. He's so salty even the Dead Sea won't have him.

He's the very epitome of a past ATG having no idea WTF he's talking about.

 

Haha that's great, what a lunatic.

 

Not even Superman can beat prime Mike.

 

All considered, the best fighter that Tyson beat during his prime is Berbick.

He beat who he was supposed to. When it came time for Holyfield, Tyson claimed a thumb injury, which in retrospect was probably a fabrication.

After getting out of prison, while only 30, he relinquished the WBC belt rather than fight Lewis.

Never wanted Foreman either.
Never could solve Holyfield.

Holmes came out at 42 to beat undefeated gold medalist Mercer and lose a decision to champion Holyfield.

Never relinquished his belt. Took on absolutely everybody, even while injured (Norton). Got robbed in the second Spinks fight.

 

I think a prime 1978 Holmes would beat a prime Tyson.

But Holmes says something different every time he opens his mouth. He kisses Tyson's ass one day then says Tyson was lucky the next. Does the same with Foreman, Holyfield, etc. Kissing their asses one day and says they were ordinary boxers the next day.
Holmes doesn't even have an agenda with this stuff, he just says whatever comes to his head that day.
His statements are all over the place.

To be fair, a lot of ex-champions not nearly as old as Holmes can't even form a comprehendable sentence.

 

Tired of guys claiming the reason they lost was that they weren't in shape. Why weren't you in shape? You're a professional whose job is boxing, you are supposed to train accordingly. If you didn't, don't use it as an excuse and try to taint another fighters win. Holmes never had any class and still doesn't