Mike Tyson reflects on his loss to Buster Douglas

Tyson was falling apart as early as the Tony Tubbs fight .. His peak was Marvin Frazier through Tony Tubbs .... the hinge was the death of Jimmy Jacobs in March of 88 when Don King and the Givens team began to take over his life ... by the time he fought M. Spinks he was already on the downward slope but the stylistic matchup was so in his favor it was irrelevant ... not so by the time he fought Douglas who was always a massive and massively talented but underachieving fighter who managed to put it together for one night in Tokyo. Post Tokyo was a separate stage in Tyson's career as he was a commodity , a very loose cannon and erratic, never showing the dedication and focus so necessary for him to succeed as a very small heavyweight. In reality if Tyson wasn't so valuable a commodity but a normal man he'd have been on medication full time to keep his erratic psyche in check. When later in his post prison career he was pulled off his meds for fights we all saw the explosive behavior time and again most famously vs Holyfield but also against Savarese, Norris, Bitha and others ... he was something....

 

Like a lot of guys from the era just before him, you can see his decline from around the time Don King got involved.

 

There is a kind of neverending "Tyson myth" : the idea that as great as Tyson was, he still had massive amounts of untapped potential and somehow he could have reached unknown heights if not because Don King, the death of his mentor, Robyn, the police, the jail, etc.

Excuses, excuses.

Tyson is an ATG, but let's not get carried away with the idea of a mythical "ideal" Tyson.

IMO the real Tyson we all saw was quite close to what Tyson could reasonably achieve even under the best circunstances.

Sure, maybe if Rooney stays alive or Don King is kept away, then Tyson stays a bit longer at the top, but not a lot more.

Tyson was never going to have a very long dominating reign. He was too small. His boxing style was inherently risky. He relied way too much in speed and agility. His stamina and endurance were suspect.

Tyson was built for a short amazing run and that was what we got.

 

you are somewhat right, but remember that it is impossible for a focused fighter to start regressing at the age of 21, he should naturally develop, even someone maturing so quickly like Tyson. Considering Mike's style, his prime should have been around 1992-1993, which was quite early, but his best was probably in 1987. Holyfield said that in 1984 Tyson was the only man training harder than him, while in 1988 Tyson fired the trainer who told him to focus in training. Tyson quit boxing in 1987. simply. no excuses - he just stopped focusing on boxing

 

And you base this on what facts ? Do you know anything at all about his life at that time ? If you did you'd realize how wrong you are. Tyson started to depreciate based on poor focus and training at 22 years old. Your point is he peaked at 22 ? He lost to Douglas at 24. How many other all time great fighters started to crash at 24 while remaining focused ? Zero. Your point is revisionist and absurd.