Which fights did Tyson lose due to "fading late"or "missing heart"?

I have no problem with Tyson's heart whatsoever. It's his tattoo that troubles me.

 

He always looked like he lost heart to me in the first Holy fight after the 6th round knockdown which was shortly after a good spell for Mike (a strong 5th). The fight was still pretty even after 6 but I saw a change in belief and Tyson was left throwing haymakers, which suggested to me he'd basically given up winning the fight on points, despite the fight being only at the halfway stage, and with the cards still very close.

 

Spot on post. And you're right about the Holy fight in retrospect, as hardly anyone gave the Deal a chance in 96, other than Ron Borges.. and Me, if people from my local pub are to be believed.

With the passage of time they remember me picking Evander to beat Mike, what they forget is my prediction was for their 1991 fight, so I don't want to spoil it for them...or Me.

 

Getting off the floor to win is meaningless? I'm afraid this is an incredibly ridiculous take. In a h2h matchup, getting off the floor to win is a huge indicator of grit and determination. A fighter is usually ready to go when they suffer a down, and it takes tons of guts and mental composure to turn a whole fight around after being down. Most guys are ready to quit, let alone get up.

How the hell is that disingenuous? Either the opponent is A level or they're not. Which A level fighters did Tyson beat in the 80's? An old Holmes coming off a layoff? The terrified Spinx with a thin resume moving up in weight?

I would rate Tyson higher if he got off the floor to beat Douglas and kept his title. Are you saying it's BETTER that he lost his title to a guy who had the record of a journeyman who did nothing noteworthy before or after Tokyo? It's ENTIRELY his fault he was down against a guy like Douglas. All I'm hearing are excuses and failing to apply the same criteria to Tyson that everyone does for other ATGs. Plenty of great and even not so great fighters won after being beaten from pillar to post. That lowers his h2h standing, period.

 

Holy certainly took over completely after that KD. And that is kind of strange since it looked to be more off balance than anything. My reading was that he started to tire around that point anyhow, but if it was the KD that deflated him that bad even though it didn't hurt him, then it has to be seen as a bit of a mental collapse, I think.

 

Yeah, Tyson had the kind of chin that he usually was exhausted and half beaten to death when he went down, with the KD against Holy being the exception. As I remember the previous round was perhaps his best of the fight, but it could be that he blow his load in that one and started to tire badly already before he was knocked down. He didn't seem hurt by the KD, which was caused by a shot to the chest I believe, at all.