If prime David Tua was active today where would he be in the HW picture?

He wins a title but not the championship

 

He's a contender but loses to
Joshua
Usyk
Wilder
Fury
Good chance Hrgovic as well.

Tua is one of those fighters that gets very overrated on threads like this because he's an old fighter with power. He's not difficult to outbox as was seen in the Lewis, Byrd, Ike, and Rahman fight before Rahman got hit after the bell.

He knocks out Dillian Whyte and vs Andy Ruiz probably wins in a 50/50 fight.

 

I don’t see AJ beating him. He’d be scared stiff of his power.

I would also favour him vs Wilder.

Fury would beat him

 

Him vs. Ruiz would be a funny fight.

 

Where does this notion come from that Usyk can be KOd just like that? I've seen this thing popping up when people talk about his hypothetical fights against Wilder, Joyce, even a pillow-fisted Fury, who needed 11 rounds and 150 power punches to stop a walking punching bag Wider, was mentioned as someone who could knock Usyk out.

How come people haven't learnt yet that Usyk has a granite chin? It's ridiculous really, the guy has never even been knocked down once as a professional, and even as an amateur, only Beterbiev could hurt him - and even that wasn't like a "laying flat on his back" moment, he took a knee to the canvas then promptly recovered. Beterbiev is arguably the hardest puncher in boxing today P4P, and still, it wasn't nearly enough to seriously trouble Usyk, let alone stop him. Briedis and Gassiev are also noted punchers - they have over 40 KO wins between the two of them. Yet, they couldn't even make Usyk flinch once.

Or there's Joshua, easily the second hardest-hitting active HW. In the 10th round of the rematch, Joshua hit Usyk with a huge, clean right hand. Usyk barely even slowed down, let alone got knocked down or hurt. That shot from Joshua usually puts people to sleep, yet, if anything, Usyk just became even more fierce after Joshua landed it.

Usyk was never given a count, never even took a knee to the canvas as a professional in a total of 20 fights in the two hardest-hitting divisions. And still, people keep mentioning how this or that fighter knocks Usyk out cold Madness. It's like people are not even watching the fights.

 

A prime David Tua was something special. It wasn't however a prime David Tua that lost to Lennox Lewis but in all fairness the prime version would also have lost.

Today a prime DT would be koing AJ Usyk and White and losing to Fury, not sure what would happen vs Wilder and I don't know that Hrgovic dude.

 

An in shape David Tua lost convincingly to Chris Byrd, who was a light hitting defensive Southpaw who does that remind you of ? Aka Usyk. Tua was also outboxed for large periods by the likes of Rahman, Maskaev, etc. He would be frustrated by the likes of Usyk and lose a decision.

He would have a chance against Wilder, Joshua, though I agree with that. He also sends Whyte to the shadow realm but loses to Fury.

 

I don't think Joshua is the second hardest puncher at HW (ignoring the obvious, definitely does not hit as hard as Zhang, not sure if he hits as hard as Browne, I'd put him behind Dubois on the eye-test) but I basically agree with the rest of your post.

 

Tua vs Joyce would be a barn burner.

I got Tua in that one.

 

Tua KO's AJ and Parker on the same night.

 

If David Tua had the right trainer who taught him to work the body and throw right hands
as well as left hooks, he'd clean out the division. Watch the Moorer fight, he went to the
body and set up the left hook. He'd still get blowouts like Ruiz but he'd be even more
dangerous if he had more going on.

 

I don't

 

Cherrypicking lame facts is not nice. After the second Hashim Rahman fight Tua's magic was simply gone. Have whatever opinion you want but don't be throwing around lame facts as proof of it's validity.

 

What lame facts ? he was outboxed by Maskaev for 10 rounds in his "prime". Rahman outboxed Tua for large periods in their 1st meeting in his "prime" until Tua hit him after the bell, and then got a highly dubious early stoppage in the 10th round.

Tua had very dangerous power which could bail him out in a fight which it did a few times, but he could and has been outboxed in fights. And yes i would heavily favour Usyk to outbox Tua over 12 rounds.

 

Top 10 for sure, not higher imo, too slow a foot.