Would Mike Tyson have been the best heavyweight ever if he had mastered the smash?

Tyson didn't have long enough arms, and didn't compete with a style to work towards and around using the smash.

 

No. Possessing a devastating punch wasn’t something he lacked.

 

Doesn’t seem like a punch that would work with his short arms. And since when was lack of power, or lack of a sufficient selection of power punches, an issue of his?

I gather this is some play off the Ruddock thread?

 

No.

He would have been the best heavy ever if he retired at 28-29, avenged his loss to Douglas and beat Holyfield and Lewis in the early 90's.

Tyson's speed reliant style was never meant to go past the age of 30-31. He lost 3 of his peak years to prison and was never the same fighter again.

 

Crazy to think that Patterson hit his peak in his thirties and was able to last so long in the division with the same style. Not to mention that Floyd's speed retained a lot better than Tyson's did.

 

Tyson's handspeed didn't decline so much although his stamina declined massively which made it hard for him to throw 4-6 punch combinations. So he could throw combinations sometimes but chose to go for one punch ko's.

Tyson's footspeed declined precipitously though. He was a natural 215 lb man so he had 30-40 lbs over Floyd. Its much harder for a heavy fighter like Mike to maintain his footspeed with such a heavy frame.

I think even if Cus had lived, given how heavy Mike's build was and how much wear and tear he had given his early success, he would have faded by his late 20's.

But give him Cus and Kevin Rooney, keep him away from Robin Givens, keep him motivated and he likely retires on top around 1995-96 while only have 1 or 2 losses on his resume and big wins over the likes of Lewis and possibly Holyfield.

 

Great comment. Tyson retained most of his handspeed until the late 90's. I will even dare to say that he was still quick during the early 00's.
However, he started to be flat footed as soon as 1989, probably at first because of negligence, and after prison because of physical reasons. I think his decline in footspeed is the first factor that made him a more ordinary boxer, not the lack of head movement or combinations.
To be fair, he compensated this in 1999/2000 (with Tommy Brooks in his corner) by sidestepping and targeting the body.

 

Patterson lived clean. Tyson did not. That's certainly a factor right there. Hard to be in pristine shape, especially as you get older, when you're spending your free time drinking and doing coke.

 

Speaking of his body attacks -- I think of his exhibition with RJJ, where he (due to gentleman's agreement I assume) mostly just attacked the body. Even though he wasn't even really throwing with ill intent, you could tell that Roy was NOT enjoying being hit by those body shots, as he started clinching nonstop after a while.

 

He would be if he mastered discipline.

 

Even before he won a world title he was partying, drinking, doing coke occasionally and shagging hoes. He fought the Berbick fight with gonorrhea he caught from the prostitute, lol. He was wired that way, he was doing drugs since he was 12.

 

He arguably IS, in that unstoppable Peak period, but taking the losses he had, in Who & How (type of Boxers or Fighters), they beat him, it opens up fair questions to other greats over the years who 'might' have done the same...

Still it is No Guarantee that they would have.

Mike Tyson ' may well ' have been the most destructive & dangerous Heavyweight in Boxing History... at least during his few peak years at the TOP!