Prime Tyson vs Prime Joe Louis

Louis is a master counter puncher but was also a smart fighter, most of his fights he pursued without too much fear for the other guy,in the Max Baer fight he was aware of Max's power and fought accordingly. You can search Tyson's resume and would find no one with Louis's counter punching ability and 2-fisted variety of offense. Tyson is always a dangerous puncher but only once took a man out after the 8th round. Tyson comes out fast but gets discouraged even faster because Louis is no Michael Spinks and Tyson would feel that power...He may bite Joe's ear or hit him low or take a count but its a quicker exit than the 1 st Holyfield fight

 

....i was going to reply to this but then i red bummy davis' post and he says it all perfectly and there is nothing to add.:good

 

Nice. Anyone choosing a single outcome as the only possibility is just playing sides when you have two incredibly dynamic finishers. I would cherish this match-up even moreso than Dempsey Louis because Tyson was so much more refined and even more talented than Dempsey. The first who withers get pounced on. I would pick Tyson... at this moment... but not by much.

 

Totally agree. Louis was the more economical puncher too and dare i say it just as great a combintion puncher, also the slightly better finisher when he had his man in touble he got them out of there better than any heavyweight in history. I think Louis would catch Tyson at some point around the mid-rounds and stop him.

 

get an idea mate.

 

Well where do I start??? Did Mike Tyson threw a better left Jab than Joe Louis?? Was Mike Tyson was a better boxer than Joe Louis??? Did Tyson threw a better straight right hand than Joe Louis?? Tyson's pet punch was his uppercut and I'm not even sure his uppercut was better than Louis' all told? And Defence? 95% of the time Tyson never needed much of a defence because his opponents in his prime rarely threw anything back at him and when they did it was rarely thrown with genuine commitment? The odd times when this did happen are memorable because of this - the only time Bonecrusher dared to throw a punch (in the last 10 seconds - wow how brave!) he rocked Tyson, TNT Tucker threw a reflex uppercut which Tyson walked straight onto which lifted him off his feet and backwards but other than that it was all one way traffic? And Bruno hurt him badly but he was so stiff and robotic,and,well,just not a fighter enough to take advantage when Tyson was there for the taking really?

Was Mike Tyson really a better combination puncher than Joe Louis?....just NO

Mike Tyson was not as accurate as the pinpoint Joe, Tyson did have a habit of being prone to wildness and missing shots and swinging for the fences etc!?

Was Tyson as good a ring general as Joe Louis? Again no

Picky i know but in one of my very favourite Louis performances vs Buddy Baer Louis weighed what 207 and in my favourite Tyson performance vs Mitch Green Tyson was 215 - that's 8 pounds - not something that Louis wasnt used to? Against Holmes Tyson was 214 aswell although he tended to average 217 in his heyday

And Who did Tyson face in his prime years who could even approach the ability of a Joe Louis??

 

Prime Foreman could easily trade with Tyson. Tyson couldn't intimidate him, either.

 

Louis didn't like to be crowded that is no secret and is why I think fighters like Tyson, Dempsey, and Marciano would KO him. All 3 were deadly finishers once the opponent was knocked down or hurt.

 

Nobody likes to be crowded. If you watch his second bout with Godoy you will see how Louis could handle a crouching swarming fighter.

My pick would be Louis. Just more of a complete package and his punches would prevent Mike from coming in without great caution. I would expect Louis to box and counterpunch Tyson as he did with M Baer and Galento....side stepping and countering with pin point accuracy. Once he lands a punch that hurts he would then close in for the kill. Louis ko 6.

 

yes but other fighters dealt with it much better than Louis. You can bet if Tyson knocks him down the fight is over he would get swarmed and taken out. And I am not one of these "Prime Tyson with Kevin Rooney beats anyone" people either. Louis would be very uncomfortable in there and not be able to fight his fight with the fighters I mentioned.

 

Louis lacked the chin, defense and footwork to weather the early storm from Tyson. I like Mike here.

 

Yes, this is what Louis said, and the films back it up. Even a modestly talented Godoy's crowding tactics made Louis look very confused and lethargic in their first fight.

 

id favour Tyson here, he has the faster hands and would be getting off first in the exchanges which would be key here.

I don't like the "Who has Tyson fought who has the two handed power and skill of Louis" simply because it is easily countered by "Who has Louis fought who has the two handed power and skill of Tyson".

 

Louis stated he did not like fighting swarmers and movers/boxers.

Again Godoy swarmed Louis in fight one with a level of success but was utterly destroyed in fight two as Joe adjusted his game plan. Godoys face looked like a zombie mask after the bout which ended in a ko in the eighth round.

Although not a technical comparison Sports Illustrated put together a beautiful pictorial in black and white showing how a fight between the two would go.

Louis was the far greater fighter and there was always a level of dog in Tyson. Once he feels Louis power he will become a different more cautious fighter.

 

Regardless of who picks who...this is one of the bouts that is likely to be explosive immediately. I would almost fear for one of these guys life.

Honestly, if Mike Tyson was the type who would go life and death to get a win, I would pick him over Louis, because that is exactly the kind of effort it will take to beat the Louis that destroyed Schemling.