Prime Marciano V Tysons Challengers?

Yeah!

 

His record is relatively poor. It's not difficult to see that. As you mentioned, he had 65 fights. 57 wins.
You can single out 2 wins if you want, one of them razor close and disputable. Yes, those wins indicate that he was actually quite good, as does his loss to Tyson in some way, but they don't validate his entire record.
There's another 55 wins ... which is a grand statistic indeed ... but they are mostly poor opponents and some very poor performances at times too.

 

Rocky and Tyson have similar dimensions.

Tyson was obviously 30 pounds heavier but Rocky could easily bulk up to reduce thay differential to insignificance.

Yes Rocky has 3 inches less reach but he does his best work inside anyways and wouldn't be trying to out jab these men (although Prime Tyson fought first and foremost behind a solid jab).

The biggest advantage for me is that Tyson was a lot quicker so was able to beat men to the punch before taking many shots himself.

Although Rocky was cut from a different cloth so he would be willing to exchange and back his power.

I'm not getting involved in lineal debates, so ill start from Berbick.

Berbick: he came out determined to prove the young challenger was outmatched physically. This spells disaster against a man as durable and hard hitting as Rocky. Rocky ko.

Smith: this is the toughest one for me. Smith was very strong and would try to nullify Rocky up close. Only one man tried doing that to Rocky and that was Shkor who had some success before being battered. I don't see Rocky stopping Smith but I do envision his aggression ensuring he takes a points win.

Thomas: Pinklon would have moments of success but would ultimately be walked down and stopped.

Tucker: Rocky doesn't have the hand speed to box with Tucker as Mike did. I think this is a come from behind knockout scenario. Tucker probably starts all well and good behind his long jab but his footwork was too rigid and at some point he gets cornered and stopped.

Biggs, Holmes and Tubbs weren't really in shape to compete. Similar to how I saw Thomas going. They might have good moments here and there but overall their conditioning let's then down and Rocky stops them.

Spinks: same outcome. Paper champion freezing against his outstanding contender.

Bruno: he poses the biggest threat obviously, of he lands the bomb he landed on Tyson it could end Rocky, we don't know if he can cope with that level of power. Giving the benefit of the doubt you would have to favour Rocky to corner and stop him.

Williams: makes Rocky work a bit harder because he didn't have that blinding speed to counter as Tyson did. Might even take the first couple of rounds but once the left hook gets through its over.

Douglas: Rocky won't stand behind a jab for 8 rounds as Mike did. Rocky will at some point leap with a hook and risk leaving himself open to land his big right hook. I see this ending within 3 rounds.

Holyfield: this is probably where his reign ends. He won't be as dominant as Tyson was, will have taken more punishment than Mike did and will be against a much fresher opponent who is quicker and can match his heart.

I don't see Rocky taking too many big punches in his reign, Bruno maybe at some point. But he'll eat a lot of jabs and will be cut numerous times. I think he betters Tyson in the reign but ultimately doesn't look as good as Tyson did (is that even possible given how good Tyson did look?) So prime for prime I favour Mike but given that Mike burned out and I expect Rocky to stay well conditioned, I think he does succeed where Mike failed.

 

I don't find it hard to envision Rocky weighing 205-215 pounds. He could bulk enough to make the difference insignificant. The biggest advantage for Tyson isn't his inches here and there, it's his hand speed.

 

I never suggested they were all absolute bums.
His record was bad though, in the sense that Deontay Wilder's is.
Before he fought Douglas and Tyson in 1987, it was truly awful.

 

I wouldn't take those tales of the tape stats too seriously.
There's no agency that goes around measuring boxers in a regulated and standardized manner.
I can measure a neck or a thigh at two different places and get vastly different measurement.
I've seen arms being measure relaxed and then flexed and they vary up to 2 or 3 inches.

Marciano was pretty stocky for a 5'10 man, not particularly heavily muscled over all, but he was strong and solid.
His neck and legs look big to me.

 

Agree mate. I can measure my bicep in the morning and evening in the same place and get different measurements.

 

I see Marciano struggling with guys who weren't only bigger than him but faster, slicker and far more mobile. The 80's were the age where the really big heavyweights had arrived.

Rocky wins some and loses some here.

 

I agree that Tyson's most significant advantages are speed (hand speed and upper-body movement), which I don't see Marciano surviving, but I don't know how anyone could deny that Tyson was a significantly bigger man than Marciano. They have different frames and body types. A puffed up 215-lb Marciano would be like a 235-240-lb Tyson.

 

Puffing Marciano up most definitely slows him down.

 

Lmao!!! What a bunch of ****. Marciano was 200 at 40 and he was a beach ball

Marciano was what he was at 185 pounds period.over 200 pounds he would be a pork without any advantage.stop making fantasy versions of a fighter in order
To make an argument in his favour

 

Exactly. Tyson has clearly wider frame, wider thorax,lamotta said that tyson was bigger and stronger than marciano