since this has turned into somewhat of a ron lyle board let me ask this question, what if ron did beat ali for the heavyweights champion how long would he have held the title who would have challenged him and who would have taken it away from him? i believe ron is getting completley overrated here and i feel somewhat responsible for starting threads about him.
He'd probably hold the title until about 1987 when he'd lost to a 21 year old Mike Tyson at about 50 years of age. Who else would be around to beat him ? There's no way Jimmy Young could beat him again. Lightning doesn't strike the same place 3 times. He'd obviously beat Foreman in a rematch, and he'd be too much for Holmes. He wouldn't have to throw those fights to Lynn Ball and Cooney - not if he was champion. He'd win a super fight with Cooney, and he'd have a little too much for Witherspoon, Thomas, Dokes and Page. But he'd been on the decline by about 1983 or '84 and he'd be ready to be taken when Tyson comes along.
There would have been an Ali rematch before 1975 was out. This time Ali would n't clown and give rounds away to Ron on workrate. Muhammad would have stopped Ron earlier.
