Mike Tyson versus Michael Spinks

I am of the opinion Spinks wasn’t hurt enough to take a 10-count & did so willingly, but I usually encounter stiff opposition.

My two cents is he laid down.

 

We will have to agree to disagree.

Spinks's face belongs to somebody who is staring at the abyss ... and the abyss punches him in the face.

 

Yeah even If the word “ scared “ isn’t the right one, he sure didn’t look too confident to me. I’ve never once thought that Spinks went into that fight thinking he was going to win.

 

It’s his eyes during the second knockdown that I take note of. Doesn’t look hurt to me, only lucid & terrified. I will of course leave room for the possibility I misinterpret what I see, but that “fall” into the ropes as the count was going on didn’t help to dissuade me much.

 

If Spinks had seen enough to determine he couldn't win the fight perhaps he did. It was the second knockdown in a short period of time and the previous knockdown he was nowhere close to being out. Tyson only landed 8 punches in the whole fight. So I see where you are coming from. But barring a confession there is no way to prove it so it's ultimatly a pointless exercise. And thats true in all cases where we question whether or not a fighter was capable of beating a 10 count.

Either way IMO beating the 10 count is not an obligation. If you don't think you can win there is no shame in not getting back up. You are not obligated to get beaten to a point you can't get up in 10 seconds. Spinks was an undefeated fighter who'd never experienced that and perhaps he didn't want to experience that. And if thats the case thats okay IMO.

 

Spinks was horrified of Tyson. He refused to even get out of the locker room as his trainers had to drag him out. Obviously that fear doesn't just go away once actually in the ring with Tyson. It gets magnified to new heights as evident by him backpedaling the whole fight instead of refusing to take the fight to Tyson. Spinks had an actual phobia of Tyson as far as I'm concerned as he stated that fight was the reason why he quit boxing. He was that terrified of the guy. I'd not be surprised if he was on the verge of having a panic attack on the inside.

Call that what you will, but in no way did Spinks show anything resembling bravery or confidence.

 

I’d have to disagree on two counts - just my opinion of course. One is professional - Spinks is paid (& paid well) to fight. If he laid down & did so that early, he has no business sticking his hand out for the payday.

The second is personal &, again, highly subjective - but I am of the opinion that winning is only the second most important thing in a fight - the first is being brave enough to fight. You are already the winner if you are frightened & fight a man anyway. I cannot say Spinks fulfilled that obligation just by being in the ring.

It was a shameful end to a great career, IMO.

 

IMO within the confines of fighting getting a beating is not part of your contract if you feel you can no longer win. Its prize fighting and if you no longer can win the prize the fight is over. On the other hand giving up in less than 2 minutes and 10 punches is pushing that concept to its most ridicolous extreme. Maybe Spinks was obligated to dance around another round or two. Assuming he actually could have gotten up which of course we do not actually know.

One thing I have to give Spinks credit for is he was the undefeated lineal champ in his final fight. He didn't have to take the Tyson fight. He could have retired and people would be making threads on forums speculating about Tyson v Spinks. He could have denied Tyson the credit for beating him so quickly and making him look so horrible. But he didn't do that he got in the ring and took the beating of brevity.

 

If there weren’t a big payday attached to laying down, I’d agree with you on the last part - but Boxing is also a profession, just like any other. He put his hand out for the coin but, as best as I can determine, didn’t put in the work to justify it. Not a good look.

 

Well you said you were sick of hearing it but to be fair, no one here has said that. I do think he laid down, if that counts.

 

Spinks didn’t fight scared. He tried to fight hard, perhaps too hard, without enough footwork and caution, and got knocked out by a tremendous puncher in his prime who relentlessly attacked him with great speed and brutal blows, both leads and counters, and forced him to fight. Spinks never was big enough or strong enough to handle that version of Tyson. Moving and grabbing more only would’ve delayed the inevitable by a round or two. At least he tried.

 

For me Spinks totally abandoning histhe Eddie Futch devised gameplan basically from the get go was proof positive something was amiss. He'd previously been brilliant at following and adhering to gameplans. He mostly shelved some of his biggest strengths against Qawi in order to gain tactical advantages and was extremely disciplined all night. Against Holmes he was content to give away some early rounds while Holmes still had some sting and fought two truly excellent fights. His restraint in these fights was truly impressive given he was one of the biggest bangers with either hand in 175 pound history and used to being the boss, the one who was feared.

Against Tyson he short circuited. Even if one says he was too game and too aggressive that in itself can still be a manifestation of fear or nerves. He also looked very slow and lethargic. Sure Tyson's speed and peak form made him look perhaps slower than he was but even in isolation he was sluggish. On top of that some pretty strong stories emerged from the dressing room.

 

Well whether he tried is up for debate. I wouldn’t call what I saw from him an effort.