Tysons' peak performance/first sign of trouble ahead .

Oh, I totally agree that the Ruddock fight performances are underrated. Tyson was in there with a young, strong, powerful, big, game guy who really tried to knock him out. Tyson proved he had a chin, toughness, and condition in those fights. Tyson actually ruined Rudddock with the beating he administered in the second bout. Ruddock never again was the same.

 

Man that is one great post.

@Sangria Bookmark this one for future debates mate. It can't be put any any more convincingly than this.

 

You can tell that Tyson really hated Ruddock, the pre-fight interviews made this clear and that hate funny enough probably gave him his best motivation in a long time for a fight. It's probable that was the last we saw of a truly motivated Mike, as he never appeared quite as motivated post-prison.

 

I do feel like the Tyson that beat Ruddock was still the best heavyweight in the division at the time.

 

I love it when good writers articulate what I can't come close to doing, and that's writing clearly and intelligently what's going on in my brain. That's exactly what Apollack did here. A damn good post, if I may be so bold sir.

Thank you for tagging me. It's been a rough month and a post like this can cheer a lad up. I hope you're doing well my friend!!

 

Short of the 5 years in prison I don't think there were signs he was getting worse and the idea of a 24 or 25 year ex champ with 1 loss regressing because he didn't have this coach or that cornerman is a very bizzare conversation. And even if theres truth to it we wouldn't be having that conversation if it was someone else. We'd just take the results as what they were and move on.

The wild thing is before Buster beat him that fight actually made him look great cause he had seemingly put out the first fire out of his career. He'd come back from losing the first few rounds which is a worst case scenario for Tyson other than getting knocked out. In the 2nd Ruddock fight the fact he had the initative at the bell was also impressive.

People can ooh and ah over his early KOs but they were what was supposed to happen and usually happened when Tyson won all the way up to the end. Even when someone could survive the early rounds like Tucker or Bonecrusher Tyson had a big lead before he ever started to tire. So seeing him make comebacks and be on the offensive at the end of 12 competitive rounds with someone like Ruddock really is the best he ever looked. Hes 5 ft 10 carrying 220.

Tyson didn't have his belt but he might have been the best he ever was in the beltless period prior to prison. He was still better than Buster. I'm up in the air if Tyson could have beaten Holyfield earlier(the idea a younger guy could have beaten someone 4 years older only if they fought earlier seems bizzare) but if Tyson could this would have been the time.

 

He's an acclaimed boxing author so you just know he's going to nail his descriptions hahaha. He'd obviously have his finger on the pulse too, historically.

Things are going quite well here, nice, steady and predictable just the way i like things. I hope things pick up for you old mate.

 

For me, peak Tyson was his surgical dismantling of Tyrell Biggs. Biggs was a hyped Olympic medalist, a mover, a sweet boxer, someone many felt who could, should have given Mike some problems with his movement and jab.

Mike didn't like Biggs who had been picked ahead of him for Olympic super heavy and wanted to make him pay for sleights, real and imagined 'with his health'. The reality was that Biggs never had a chance, a mentally frail young man battling addiction problems, he should have been another highlight reel blow out for Mike...so, why was it peak Tyson?

For me, this was akin to a 'what's my name' Ali type beating. Mike's skill was in NOT knocking Biggs out and he absolutely battered him, ruined him, as appaling as that sounds. Tyson hit him hard and often but allowed him to stay on his feet, it was a dsipaly of such subtle, controlled violence that I remember finding it terrifying that a fighter had both the skill and mentality to 'play' with an opponent with such controlled ferocity. The Ruddock fights are also 'peak' Mike for me, he answered a lot of questions in the first one, showed he wasn't just a flat track bully, an on top fighter, he had a proper tear up with a man who would not back down yet brutalised him in their rematch.

 

Spinks was the peak

Rooney was fired. Tyson was inactive for eight months and looked sloppy against Bruno. His defense had regressed.

That was the first sign of trouble, at least in the ring.

But even I at 19 years old saw trouble brewing when Don King was looking to exert much more control than just acting as promoter. He wanted Team Tyson gone and used the race card in his manipulation efforts. Add in Robin Givens efforts for control and a recipe for disaster was brewing

Tyson should have kept his team and never let Givens and King manipulate him to the extent they did.

Yes his team took a substantial cut of his earnings but they had him on a path to greatness.

King should have been promoter only

 

The irony is that Cayton actually overpaid Tyson, and even Robin Givens was willing to keep him after he accepted to reduce his share.

 

Tyson became a very rich man at a young age, we all know his background hard upbringing.

I guess become a multi millionaire the biggest box office boxer on the planet, not anyone actually wanted to question his lifestyle.

They simply wanted to stay on the payroll.

 

If i remember correctly, after he fought bruno1, the ring magazine front page headline was, the Bruno fight reveals Mike can be beat.

 

I think that too much is probably made out of the Bruno fight. He floored Bruno quickly and likely just thought that he'd fold like the rest and got caught and took some time to get back on track. But when he did he soon finished Bruno with his trademark quality.

He looked off for a few rounds against Thomas, looked a bit unfocussed in the first against round Tubbs and lost two of the first three against Tucker. This "peak Tyson" that was phenomenally sharp in every minute of every round never existed.

If it wasn't for the Douglas loss the Bruno fight would never been mentioned as the sign of anything.

I think people make too much out of this. Tyson was overconfident and not super well prepared physically or mentally and faced a good fighter in Douglas who had the fight of his life. It happens.

 

Agreed on both counts.

 

Much of the mythical version of unbeatable Mike Tyson is just that — a myth.

He blew people out quickly because he was ridiculously explosive, hit like a ton of bricks and was a marvelous finisher.

But we saw against Tillis, Mitch Green, Bonecrusher and Tucker that he was a guy who seemed to shift into second gear after the early rounds and throw two punches and fall into a clinch. He lost interest in dominating after a few rounds and was willing to coast.

People talk about his jab and head movement, but there’s scant evidence of it past say round five or six in any fights.