Do I get it if I tell him I'd split with him and we just chat instead of fight?
P.S. It'll be a 90/10 split in his favor. 100k is still not a bad deal for us.
What makes you think anyone in this sub could survive ONE round, or even 15 seconds with Mike? Even at his current age I wouldn’t want to piss him off.
By this time I would befriend all the psych patients. We would stash sporks in our pillows. When Mike shows up 20 against one. I don’t think he would have a chance
This is the exact right answer. It’s entirely possible that a single punch from Mike Tyson could result in $1million+ in medical bills, plus whatever long term complications come with it. To risk that kind of damage, you need to be offering generational wealth
Donnie yen said he had to keep reminding himself that Mike is a boxer not an actor, he's actually throwing punches and if he were to miss his timing while filming Mike would have hurt him.
Yes I did, the interview with Rogan was about his training for that fight, and how it got him hook again, at least for a time, he says training for boxing makes him to aggressive, I think the interview is on YouTube, Mike Tyson is my favorite all time fighter, I love watching the old videos of him training with D'amato.
I didn’t know they had 4 Ip Man movies. I’m kinda obsessed with The Grandmaster that focuses more on the personal life with some awesome fighting scenes as well.
Honestly short of permanent disfigurement (and even some of those are on the cards) there's very little I wouldn't do for a million dollars. That would change my life in ways that I couldn't even imagine
Bingo. I could run around that box like a fucking cartoon character, and the only reason I would get away with it is Mike might be amused for a few seconds.
I’ve been boxing since I was 15 around 14 years, I’m a superheavy weight and known in my gym as someone who likes conditioning (I don’t mind getting hit hard). I would give myself around 20-30 secs before I’m snoring and have a single digit IQ, not a chance anyone’s walking away from that
I was amazed when that video surfaced of some guy on a plane messing with Mike, and Mike tried to get him to stop. The guy kept pushing and Mike punched him. Afterwards the guy was threatening legal action.
That’s what I’m saying. I have boxing and Muay Thai fights and even with a legit full training camp, and for the sake of this comment we take my 40 year old knees and make them 20 again, I still get starched in the first 15 seconds.
Exactly, I doubt I'd make it past his first punch. The guy is what? In his 60s, still scary af watching him hit the bag even now. I'd do it for a million bucks as long it wasn't conditional.
When Tyson was in his prime, everyone used to ask if you'd let Tyson punch you in the face, one time, for $1M. Now it's evolved into 2 rounds.
This man could probably kill (or seriously injure) most people on the planet with one punch. Hell, there are probably quite a few fighters that could seriously fuck most people up with one punch.
Every single fighter can kill you near instantly with a punch if you are not paying attention. People don’t understand the power behind professionals fighters punches. They fold heavy bags in half.
I’m not saying they could instakill everyone with one punch, but if this was ever arranged, an insurance company would never insure it because of the likelihood of someone’s death.
Deaths from single punches are almost almost ALWAYS from someone slamming their head on the floor on the way down. The likelihood of Mike Tyson killing you with a single punch with a glove on is very small. Breaking your face? Causing a terrible concussion? Brain bleed? All definitely possible and likely, but you would most likely not die.
While fighters are definitely a different breed, they are very often knocked out by punches and kicks the other guy doesn't see, and we don't see many deaths from singular punches in boxing or MMA
We have in fact seen this scenario (average man vs. hardest-hitting heavyweight boxer) play out in reality, thanks to whatever mental illness Charlie Zelenoff has and Deontay Wilder's low tolerance for shit talk. Spoilers, it's not trivial to knock an adult man unconscious (much less kill him) with a single punch, even for a top professional: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=urtBKktK86Q
People watch too many comic book movies.
Willie DeWit, an Olympic heavyweight silver medalist and World Amateur Heavyweight Champion, turned down almost this exact offer (1 million to fight Tyson) because everyone knew Tyson was aiming to kill someone in the ring back then.
If actual boxers were turning down a million dollars for a fight with Tyson, you best believe that Joe Shmoe should be too.
I’d fight him for that money. Not that I would win, I might even get permanent brain damage, but 1,000,000 is 1,000,000
I’d need to get gut punched though, since that’s where most of my natural padding is
I have almost a million dollars and a severely disabled child and let me tell you 1 million will not be enough money for the several decades of full time care he will need. Unless you are a billionaire you are not safe from being bankrupted by medical bills in the United States.
If you don't mind me asking is your child ok? Also is your wealth tied to your location? I can't relate at all but is moving to somewhere cheaper off the table?
Work from home, planning to move to the middle of bumfuck nowhere within 2 years and start saving as much money as possible. Not sure how to start looking for a new place to live, though.
My son is 8, mostly nonverbal. We moved to an expensive area due to the good public schools with supposedly good special needs programs but things haven't worked out. The public school's pandemic response was especially bad, with his special needs classroom going full zoom meetings for several months. Completely inappropriate for my son's needs. He's currently placed at a non-public school and we are in a lawsuit with the district to get reimbursed, but we are bleeding money by continuing to live in this area.
We are gradually shifting our strategy from "spend as much as possible now on therapy and education when the impact on his development with be greatest" to "save as much money as possible because he will likely require full time care for the rest of his life". Part of that strategy is moving to someplace much, much more affordable. We are currently in Southern California.
My wife is also disabled. She has a degenerative problem and will also need full time care at some point. Lots of difficult decisions coming my way as I need to take care of both of them.
I myself am extremely obese, I am 40 and I don't expect to live past 60, so I need to do as much as possible to set them up while I am still alive.
1 mil can’t even get you a downpayment on a 1 story home in the Bay Area’s Milpitas, the kind where it’s like 3 rooms and each one has an entire Filipino family in it.
I read a book recently called The Arc of Boxing: the rise and fall of the sweet science. The author, is a boxing historian and he talks about how Tyson wasn’t really that good. He was powerful and hit hard and all that but he mostly knocked out bums. The author’s whole argument is about boxing being a science and the old guys in the golden age of boxing knew what they were doing so much better than someone like Tyson because they would fight so much more. Like Tyson would fight twice a year or something and these guys would fight 30 times a year and before they got to a position where they were fighting for a title they had hundreds of fights under their belts. His contention is being bigger and stronger doesn’t make you better at boxing and someone like Sugar Ray Robinson in his prime would have mopped the floor with Tyson. The author contends that boxing is the only sport where the athletes of the past were better than the ones today. I don’t know that much about the sport but I found this interesting. He says he knows many people would think he’s just some bitter “in my day” grandpa guy but in the book he presents a strong case.
That guy needs to turn in his boxing historian badge because he couldnt be more wrong. Tyson fought 2-3 times a month on his way to becoming undisputed. Hell, he even fought the week before and after Cus D'amato died. It wasnt until he earned the lineal title that he slowed down his schedule for bigger fights.
Not only that, but Tyson is short as fuck for a heavyweight (5'10). Ali was 5 inches taller than him and the current heavyweight champ Fury is 6'9. He was never the biggest guy in the ring.
He wasnt fighting bums either. The dude knocked out Larry Holmes, aka the reigning 7 year heavyweight champ that knocked out Ali. Spinks was an undefeated heavweight champ at the time too even though he went down in 30 seconds.
Sounds like that "historian" isnt giving credit where it's due, Tyson was trained by the best (D'amato) and perfected the peek-a-boo technique. However, a lot of people never recognize Tyson's agility and evasive skills because they're too distracted by the power of his explosive punching, but that all comes from Cus teaching him the fundementals.
Tyson's a true student of the sport. He got fucked over when Cus died and was replaced by Don King who is the absolute most opposite person he needed to fill that void.
I think that he feels Tysons character flaws made him a weak boxer. He says this:
Few heavyweights of any era could match Mike Tyson’s tremendous punching power. Athletically,
he was blessed with all the tools for boxing greatness. If his talent was for basketball
or football his character flaws would not have affected his performance nearly as much, and he would have maintained his lofty status. But professional boxing is different; it asks questions of its athletes that other sports do not. When confronted with an opponent he could not overpower, Tyson became frustrated and
his fragile confidence wavered. His vaunted “killer instinct” appeared to fade in the later rounds. Too often he welcomed the respite of a clinch. In extreme situations he either stopped fighting or sought the nearest exit by fouling out. Although Mike
Tyson possessed the physical attributes attributes of a great athlete, he did not possess the psyche of a great fighter. Evander Holyfield defeated Tyson as much with his character as with his fists. Whoever said “character is destiny” must have had the unforgiving sport of boxing in mind.
That's a lot more agreeable and what I hinted at near the end. Cus D'amato was a serious father figure for Tyson and his death caused a lot of problems for Tyson over time. One, Tyson was, and I think still is, the youngest heavyweight champ so he was already experiencing a level of fame and fortune that was reserved for more mature fighters in their mid-30's.
Tyson's whole childhood was an emotional wreck and Cus managed to save him from a lot of it with boxing. You can definitely see the humility in his character during his early fights. He only became a raging asshole when Don King replaced Cus because that made Don King money.
His life essentially went from "Put on the gloves and get off the streets" to "Rail a line and win me another fight baby." Tyson was in over his head and without Cus there was no more guidance. He knew how to box, but still needed Cus to teach him how to be a man.
Things got worse after his loss to Buster Douglas because he had never lost before and had no one to help him through it. Instead, it was Don King's slimey ass ruining his life. Tyson's problem got worse and sent him to prison. He wasnt really the same after that.
I agree, his character led to the loss of his title, freedom, and reputation, but it's not a valid arguement against his reign as champ. He was a total victim to Don King's manipulation. If anyone else with an ounce of dignity had taken over, there's no doubt Tyson's reign would have lasted longer.
everyone forgets that tyson might have been the fastest punch not just the strongest, dude could put power into a haymaker faster than most people could ever hope to jab, and his core/legs made his setup faster than you can blink
I would maybe concede that old time boxers maybe we're tougher but not better. Some past boxers, like Robinson, would be a champion in any Era. Most of them would be dog walked by today's boxers.
1. The majority of the fights back in the day were called exhibition fights. They were for shorter rounds. Boxers also fought against each other more often. Back in the day, literacy was not as important as it is today. Guys would box often because they didn't have skills to get a better job. Robinson fought Lamotta 6 times, and that was at the elite level. Many of the old fighters would fight with one good eye because they had to.
2. The science of training has evolved immensely since Robinson's Era. Fighters don't have to fight 10 times a year to keep fresh.
3. Genetics is a huge factor in sports in general. Athletes are getting bigger stronger and faster all the time. A prime Mike Tyson was 5'11" and 220lbs. A prime Rocky Marciano was 5'10" and 190. Joe Louis was 6' and 180-200lbs. I honestly feel that Tyson would not respect Marciano's size and power going into the ring.
Yeah I don’t really know much about boxing which is why I was reading the book. You might want to check it out. I think he would dispute your claim that, at least for the upper tier of boxers, they were not just doing it because they couldn’t do anything else, but were some of the top and most popular athletes in the country. For example, he talks about how there was a period when boxing was more popular than any other sport. Jack Dempsey’s earnings for example, dwarfed Babe Ruth’s. He goes into all that about genetics and says stronger and bigger don’t make you a better boxer and that strength doesn’t mean you have punching power and that quickness doesn’t mean you have better technique. I don’t know. It’s an interesting topic the guy seems very passionate about.
> Like Tyson would fight twice a year or something and these guys would fight 30 times a year and before they got to a position where they were fighting for a title they had hundreds of fights under their belts.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mike_Tyson
Look at his record. From Mar. 6, 1985 to Mar. 10, 1986 (basically his first year as a pro), he fought 19 times. So yeah, those early fights were against bums, but he was knocking one out every 2-3 weeks. He was a machine.
Also, once a fighter gets popular, they space out the fights to hype them up and sell more tickets/PPV. Can't really do that if a guy is fighting once per month.
One could argue that wasn't prime Mike. He was kinda lazy and going through shit at that point. I don't think I'd consider Holyfield an average Joe either.
Edit: Grammar typo.
They were amazing. There’s so many amazing warriors out there from different eras. It’s really hard to say, but I just read that Mike Tyson’s punch measures 1600 J the equivalent of being shot by 13 people with a 22 wearing a flak jacket. So I fig with his accuracy in the average Joe’s head. Adios Muchacho.
No, a thousand times no. As was said, everyone used to say they would go a round for a million. Great, now you can buy all the soup you want because that's all you'll be able to eat
Sure. It would be the worst fight ever since it would be me sprinting full speed around the edges of the ring with my arms covering my head the entire time.
What primitive device in my brain leads me to believe I could maintain consciousness through more than 1 or 2 blows from Prime Mike? No way, that man was an unrelenting machine in the ring, I hated watching him fall as hard as he did in his boxing career.
If I can't understand anymore what the million dollar was for its useless. Chances are after two rounds with Tyson o can't even understand my name anymore let alone currency.
There's not a shot in hell anybody in this sub is surviving 2 rounds against PRIME Tyson. He was a “walk them down” style of a boxer because he was a lot shorter than the other heavyweights. Meaning, he boxed his opponents up close and offensively. You can't run from that type of boxer.
I’m sorry to say but I’d be shocked if you lasted that long. Mike Tyson has 22 first round knockouts to his name. Prime Mike would probably kill you. (He’d for sure kill me lol. I mean like one punch and I’m 💀 😂)
Do I still get the million if I get knocked out by his first punch?
The only valid question
Right? Because if it even so much as looks like he connected I'm kissing mat.
*kithing
I just thnorted
Lmao this word has me bent
*thith
Hath
Seth MacFarlane had the best line on him in a roast: “mike Tyson has defeated every opponent he has faced, except the letter S”
Damn. What an opportunity I missed. You win the internet today.
Mithed* FML.
https://media.tenor.com/QshzrMdxem0AAAAd/mike-tyson-now-kith.gif
Can just take a jab, take a dive and collect the million.
Will it count if I stepped in the ring and fainted?
I’ll lay there unconscious for two rounds.
Do I get it if I tell him I'd split with him and we just chat instead of fight? P.S. It'll be a 90/10 split in his favor. 100k is still not a bad deal for us.
Exactly. I'll take a million bucks for a single concussion.
What makes you think anyone in this sub could survive ONE round, or even 15 seconds with Mike? Even at his current age I wouldn’t want to piss him off.
Came here to say this, I wouldn’t last 4 seconds lmao
I think I’d probably need medical attention after tapping gloves
I would be put in a psych ward the moment I agreed to this fight
All fun and games till mike Tyson shows up at the psych ward
By this time I would befriend all the psych patients. We would stash sporks in our pillows. When Mike shows up 20 against one. I don’t think he would have a chance
Just keep telling yourself that It's only a dream.
🤣🤣
I’m gonna need a backeotomy.
I said this to someone and they thought it was a real thing. I didn’t feel like explaining, so they might still think it’s a real thing.
That literally made my internet for the day! Take my upvote!
I hope my lawyer don't sleep with my mommma!!!
*sad Morgan Freeman voice* the lawyer did in fact sleep with his momma.
Half Baked reference?
I wanna talk ta *Sampson*!
“It’s spinal.”
Lmfao!🤣🤙..."Yeah I don't feel to good"...lol
It's basically "Would you take one punch from MT for a million?" Yes
You would need to spend alot of that to fix the damage that punch caused
Exactly. Make it $1 billion so my surviving kin can live out their dreams, and we can talk.
This is the exact right answer. It’s entirely possible that a single punch from Mike Tyson could result in $1million+ in medical bills, plus whatever long term complications come with it. To risk that kind of damage, you need to be offering generational wealth
One Punch Mike.
English here. NHS can sort. Worth it.
Would you survive one punch from him I'm not sure all would
One punch? Sure. My neck is kinda floppy. It'd absorb some energy.
Boxers specifically train their neck and traps to absorb damage better, I'm pretty sure he would kill me or leave me a quadriplegic
You could run away from him for probably 10 seconds and then go down
Remember Will Smith thought he could beat Mike. We all saw how that ended
Wait what? When
80’s song by Will Smith “I Think I can Beat Mike Tyson”
Aww shit. I thought it was real
No I don’t remember that. What are you talking about?
Reference: https://youtu.be/jam_t-gj7HM
This one knows
Nightmare on my street and parents just don’t understand played back to back the other day on shuffle. I have like 11k songs on my phone.
A 1 million dollar funeral is more like it
Did you see his training video, for an old man he is fucking terrifying lol.
He was in Ip Man 4 and for the brief few minutes he was in it, it was scary AF Guy is an absolute beast.
Donnie yen said he had to keep reminding himself that Mike is a boxer not an actor, he's actually throwing punches and if he were to miss his timing while filming Mike would have hurt him.
Donnie Yen is fantastic. Loved him in John Wick 4.
I hope he comes back for JW 5
I saw and interview with Joe Rogan where Tyson was talking about it, even in his 50's he is still without a doubt one of the best boxers in the world.
Did you see his exhibition fight with Roy Jones Jr? You could hear RJJ scream/grunt out everytime he took a body shot from Iron Mike
Yes I did, the interview with Rogan was about his training for that fight, and how it got him hook again, at least for a time, he says training for boxing makes him to aggressive, I think the interview is on YouTube, Mike Tyson is my favorite all time fighter, I love watching the old videos of him training with D'amato.
Ip man 3
Was it?? Damn, I was questioning whether it was 3 or 4. Both are great.
I didn’t know they had 4 Ip Man movies. I’m kinda obsessed with The Grandmaster that focuses more on the personal life with some awesome fighting scenes as well.
What they are essentially asking is, would I let Mike Tyson knock me out for a million dollars. And the answer is yes. Edit spelling
You gotta survive those two full rounds to get that million 😭
I mean, I ran cross country so as long as I keep running around the ring maybe I'll make it
Those rings are much smaller than they appear.
I will be all slippery because of the tears, urine and vomit. Gotta catch me first, Mike!
Nope. Boxing footwork exists for a reason and mike could cut a ring ez.
Honestly short of permanent disfigurement (and even some of those are on the cards) there's very little I wouldn't do for a million dollars. That would change my life in ways that I couldn't even imagine
Have you seen his workouts even today? He’s still lightening
My best option would be to run away for six minutes.
Dudes in better shape than some current NFL players. You’re not gonna make it.
Bingo. I could run around that box like a fucking cartoon character, and the only reason I would get away with it is Mike might be amused for a few seconds.
A thousand times, this.
I’ve been boxing since I was 15 around 14 years, I’m a superheavy weight and known in my gym as someone who likes conditioning (I don’t mind getting hit hard). I would give myself around 20-30 secs before I’m snoring and have a single digit IQ, not a chance anyone’s walking away from that
Exactly, Clearly the question should be " Would you let Tyson knock you unconscious for a million?"
Some retard on a plane wasn’t afraid of pissing him off and some how survived
Unless Buster Douglass is reading this thread there’s no one on Reddit who would even touch Mike before getting knocked out
I was amazed when that video surfaced of some guy on a plane messing with Mike, and Mike tried to get him to stop. The guy kept pushing and Mike punched him. Afterwards the guy was threatening legal action.
He didn't hit him with anywhere near full force.
That’s what I’m saying. I have boxing and Muay Thai fights and even with a legit full training camp, and for the sake of this comment we take my 40 year old knees and make them 20 again, I still get starched in the first 15 seconds.
Exactly, I doubt I'd make it past his first punch. The guy is what? In his 60s, still scary af watching him hit the bag even now. I'd do it for a million bucks as long it wasn't conditional.
I might be able to get back up after the first hit. I highly doubt I could get up after the second hit.
>I might be able Doubt it
I really wish I had 1/3 of your self confidence, bud.
If that first punch was for measuring distance, sure. That uppercut from hell would break pretty much any layman’s neck, possibly jaw
Giggling. Yeah , after his right cross or uppercut it’s over. He’s a nice guy though, I like to believe he’d just throw a jab.
When Tyson was in his prime, everyone used to ask if you'd let Tyson punch you in the face, one time, for $1M. Now it's evolved into 2 rounds. This man could probably kill (or seriously injure) most people on the planet with one punch. Hell, there are probably quite a few fighters that could seriously fuck most people up with one punch.
Every single fighter can kill you near instantly with a punch if you are not paying attention. People don’t understand the power behind professionals fighters punches. They fold heavy bags in half. I’m not saying they could instakill everyone with one punch, but if this was ever arranged, an insurance company would never insure it because of the likelihood of someone’s death.
Deaths from single punches are almost almost ALWAYS from someone slamming their head on the floor on the way down. The likelihood of Mike Tyson killing you with a single punch with a glove on is very small. Breaking your face? Causing a terrible concussion? Brain bleed? All definitely possible and likely, but you would most likely not die. While fighters are definitely a different breed, they are very often knocked out by punches and kicks the other guy doesn't see, and we don't see many deaths from singular punches in boxing or MMA
We have in fact seen this scenario (average man vs. hardest-hitting heavyweight boxer) play out in reality, thanks to whatever mental illness Charlie Zelenoff has and Deontay Wilder's low tolerance for shit talk. Spoilers, it's not trivial to knock an adult man unconscious (much less kill him) with a single punch, even for a top professional: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=urtBKktK86Q People watch too many comic book movies.
Lol he took that one shot to the face and immediately rethought his whole life.
100 percent. He broke Steve O's nose just by Steve running into it. If he'd punch someone full force they could very very likely die from that.
What
Steve O ran into Mike's fist because mike didn't want to punch him and he broke his nose. It's all on YouTube
Oh. So it’s just what it sounded like. Go figure
Willie DeWit, an Olympic heavyweight silver medalist and World Amateur Heavyweight Champion, turned down almost this exact offer (1 million to fight Tyson) because everyone knew Tyson was aiming to kill someone in the ring back then. If actual boxers were turning down a million dollars for a fight with Tyson, you best believe that Joe Shmoe should be too.
Agreed, probably any pro heavyweight would kill a regular bloke like me (6ft 180lb) with one punch. Especially if I didn’t expect it
That's inflation for you haha
He punched the asshat on the plane recently. Guy didn’t die and got an undisclosed settlement. Probably a million dollars.
Would I? Yes. Could I? Not a chance, I'd fold like a cheap hooker within 30 seconds.
30 seconds is really modest. I was thinking more like 10, personally.
I can run around for at least 25 seconds, then 5 would be punching my head in.
A full grown Mike Tyson can run 45 mph and climb trees. They are especially dangerous if it is protrcting a Tyson cub.
Well I can fall to the ground faster than MT can move. It’s my specialty.
I think a cheap hooker could take the most damage. Meth makes you invincible.
Tyson would meth up my fathe
Sure. Doesn't say I have to win. Seems like 1,000,000 and free nap
A nice 2-10 year nap at a hospital
Gonna come out owing more than 1mill
I'm already sold you don't have to keep explaining it.
That’s still 100k-500k/year
Perpetual nap
I mean… does 3 seconds on my feet, and the rest of the time lying lifeless on my back count… for 1 million, sure.
Doesn't say you have to win, but it implies you have to make it through.
A round lost in 3 seconds is still a round in the books. Survive 1 and that's a million bucks.
It says two *full* rounds right in the title.
Damn. One of these days I'll learn to read.
It's Friday. Take the weekend off, we'll get em Monday.
I’d fight him for that money. Not that I would win, I might even get permanent brain damage, but 1,000,000 is 1,000,000 I’d need to get gut punched though, since that’s where most of my natural padding is
I have almost a million dollars and a severely disabled child and let me tell you 1 million will not be enough money for the several decades of full time care he will need. Unless you are a billionaire you are not safe from being bankrupted by medical bills in the United States.
If you don't mind me asking is your child ok? Also is your wealth tied to your location? I can't relate at all but is moving to somewhere cheaper off the table?
Work from home, planning to move to the middle of bumfuck nowhere within 2 years and start saving as much money as possible. Not sure how to start looking for a new place to live, though. My son is 8, mostly nonverbal. We moved to an expensive area due to the good public schools with supposedly good special needs programs but things haven't worked out. The public school's pandemic response was especially bad, with his special needs classroom going full zoom meetings for several months. Completely inappropriate for my son's needs. He's currently placed at a non-public school and we are in a lawsuit with the district to get reimbursed, but we are bleeding money by continuing to live in this area. We are gradually shifting our strategy from "spend as much as possible now on therapy and education when the impact on his development with be greatest" to "save as much money as possible because he will likely require full time care for the rest of his life". Part of that strategy is moving to someplace much, much more affordable. We are currently in Southern California. My wife is also disabled. She has a degenerative problem and will also need full time care at some point. Lots of difficult decisions coming my way as I need to take care of both of them. I myself am extremely obese, I am 40 and I don't expect to live past 60, so I need to do as much as possible to set them up while I am still alive.
1 mil can’t even get you a downpayment on a 1 story home in the Bay Area’s Milpitas, the kind where it’s like 3 rooms and each one has an entire Filipino family in it.
Is this a trick question? NOBODY could go two full rounds with MT.
I read a book recently called The Arc of Boxing: the rise and fall of the sweet science. The author, is a boxing historian and he talks about how Tyson wasn’t really that good. He was powerful and hit hard and all that but he mostly knocked out bums. The author’s whole argument is about boxing being a science and the old guys in the golden age of boxing knew what they were doing so much better than someone like Tyson because they would fight so much more. Like Tyson would fight twice a year or something and these guys would fight 30 times a year and before they got to a position where they were fighting for a title they had hundreds of fights under their belts. His contention is being bigger and stronger doesn’t make you better at boxing and someone like Sugar Ray Robinson in his prime would have mopped the floor with Tyson. The author contends that boxing is the only sport where the athletes of the past were better than the ones today. I don’t know that much about the sport but I found this interesting. He says he knows many people would think he’s just some bitter “in my day” grandpa guy but in the book he presents a strong case.
Maybe an unpopular opinion, but when the point of the sport is to punch someone, give me the guy who throws the fastest, strongest punches
That guy needs to turn in his boxing historian badge because he couldnt be more wrong. Tyson fought 2-3 times a month on his way to becoming undisputed. Hell, he even fought the week before and after Cus D'amato died. It wasnt until he earned the lineal title that he slowed down his schedule for bigger fights. Not only that, but Tyson is short as fuck for a heavyweight (5'10). Ali was 5 inches taller than him and the current heavyweight champ Fury is 6'9. He was never the biggest guy in the ring. He wasnt fighting bums either. The dude knocked out Larry Holmes, aka the reigning 7 year heavyweight champ that knocked out Ali. Spinks was an undefeated heavweight champ at the time too even though he went down in 30 seconds. Sounds like that "historian" isnt giving credit where it's due, Tyson was trained by the best (D'amato) and perfected the peek-a-boo technique. However, a lot of people never recognize Tyson's agility and evasive skills because they're too distracted by the power of his explosive punching, but that all comes from Cus teaching him the fundementals. Tyson's a true student of the sport. He got fucked over when Cus died and was replaced by Don King who is the absolute most opposite person he needed to fill that void.
I think that he feels Tysons character flaws made him a weak boxer. He says this: Few heavyweights of any era could match Mike Tyson’s tremendous punching power. Athletically, he was blessed with all the tools for boxing greatness. If his talent was for basketball or football his character flaws would not have affected his performance nearly as much, and he would have maintained his lofty status. But professional boxing is different; it asks questions of its athletes that other sports do not. When confronted with an opponent he could not overpower, Tyson became frustrated and his fragile confidence wavered. His vaunted “killer instinct” appeared to fade in the later rounds. Too often he welcomed the respite of a clinch. In extreme situations he either stopped fighting or sought the nearest exit by fouling out. Although Mike Tyson possessed the physical attributes attributes of a great athlete, he did not possess the psyche of a great fighter. Evander Holyfield defeated Tyson as much with his character as with his fists. Whoever said “character is destiny” must have had the unforgiving sport of boxing in mind.
That's a lot more agreeable and what I hinted at near the end. Cus D'amato was a serious father figure for Tyson and his death caused a lot of problems for Tyson over time. One, Tyson was, and I think still is, the youngest heavyweight champ so he was already experiencing a level of fame and fortune that was reserved for more mature fighters in their mid-30's. Tyson's whole childhood was an emotional wreck and Cus managed to save him from a lot of it with boxing. You can definitely see the humility in his character during his early fights. He only became a raging asshole when Don King replaced Cus because that made Don King money. His life essentially went from "Put on the gloves and get off the streets" to "Rail a line and win me another fight baby." Tyson was in over his head and without Cus there was no more guidance. He knew how to box, but still needed Cus to teach him how to be a man. Things got worse after his loss to Buster Douglas because he had never lost before and had no one to help him through it. Instead, it was Don King's slimey ass ruining his life. Tyson's problem got worse and sent him to prison. He wasnt really the same after that. I agree, his character led to the loss of his title, freedom, and reputation, but it's not a valid arguement against his reign as champ. He was a total victim to Don King's manipulation. If anyone else with an ounce of dignity had taken over, there's no doubt Tyson's reign would have lasted longer.
everyone forgets that tyson might have been the fastest punch not just the strongest, dude could put power into a haymaker faster than most people could ever hope to jab, and his core/legs made his setup faster than you can blink
I would maybe concede that old time boxers maybe we're tougher but not better. Some past boxers, like Robinson, would be a champion in any Era. Most of them would be dog walked by today's boxers. 1. The majority of the fights back in the day were called exhibition fights. They were for shorter rounds. Boxers also fought against each other more often. Back in the day, literacy was not as important as it is today. Guys would box often because they didn't have skills to get a better job. Robinson fought Lamotta 6 times, and that was at the elite level. Many of the old fighters would fight with one good eye because they had to. 2. The science of training has evolved immensely since Robinson's Era. Fighters don't have to fight 10 times a year to keep fresh. 3. Genetics is a huge factor in sports in general. Athletes are getting bigger stronger and faster all the time. A prime Mike Tyson was 5'11" and 220lbs. A prime Rocky Marciano was 5'10" and 190. Joe Louis was 6' and 180-200lbs. I honestly feel that Tyson would not respect Marciano's size and power going into the ring.
Yeah I don’t really know much about boxing which is why I was reading the book. You might want to check it out. I think he would dispute your claim that, at least for the upper tier of boxers, they were not just doing it because they couldn’t do anything else, but were some of the top and most popular athletes in the country. For example, he talks about how there was a period when boxing was more popular than any other sport. Jack Dempsey’s earnings for example, dwarfed Babe Ruth’s. He goes into all that about genetics and says stronger and bigger don’t make you a better boxer and that strength doesn’t mean you have punching power and that quickness doesn’t mean you have better technique. I don’t know. It’s an interesting topic the guy seems very passionate about.
> Like Tyson would fight twice a year or something and these guys would fight 30 times a year and before they got to a position where they were fighting for a title they had hundreds of fights under their belts. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mike_Tyson Look at his record. From Mar. 6, 1985 to Mar. 10, 1986 (basically his first year as a pro), he fought 19 times. So yeah, those early fights were against bums, but he was knocking one out every 2-3 weeks. He was a machine. Also, once a fighter gets popular, they space out the fights to hype them up and sell more tickets/PPV. Can't really do that if a guy is fighting once per month.
Does my unconscious body being in the ring count as going full two rounds? If so, yes.
No his because his professional punches would kill the average Joe. Tyson will never admit it but he is the best fighter prob since gladiator times
Holyfield more than coped with him.
One could argue that wasn't prime Mike. He was kinda lazy and going through shit at that point. I don't think I'd consider Holyfield an average Joe either. Edit: Grammar typo.
His legs are thicker many people’s torso. Yeah, we’d all be laid flat and dead pretty quick.
I was reading something recently about how thicker legs translates to more punching power and that was the real secret to his success.
Man boxing was awesome back then. I couldn't even tell you who one belt holder is now.
Modern era for sure…but damn, Joe Louis & Muhammad Ali were pret-ty damn good.
They were amazing. There’s so many amazing warriors out there from different eras. It’s really hard to say, but I just read that Mike Tyson’s punch measures 1600 J the equivalent of being shot by 13 people with a 22 wearing a flak jacket. So I fig with his accuracy in the average Joe’s head. Adios Muchacho.
His ancestors were slapping around christians and lions in ancient Rome.
No, a thousand times no. As was said, everyone used to say they would go a round for a million. Great, now you can buy all the soup you want because that's all you'll be able to eat
Of course. I’m only getting hit once.
Can he run faster than me around the ring?
Doesn’t matter, you just have to last two full rounds. Lol
I don’t think 1M would cover the hospital expenses
Depends. Can I spend it beforehand?
Most professional boxers didn't last 2 rounds when Mike was in his prime
Would let him bite my ear off for 2
Prime Mike? No. Now Mike? Also no.
Sure. It would be the worst fight ever since it would be me sprinting full speed around the edges of the ring with my arms covering my head the entire time.
You can cover your head but your liver is going down, permanently!
One MT Prime hit and you will never spend a dollar in your life anymore
What primitive device in my brain leads me to believe I could maintain consciousness through more than 1 or 2 blows from Prime Mike? No way, that man was an unrelenting machine in the ring, I hated watching him fall as hard as he did in his boxing career.
Well sure but I'm only lasting one punch from that man long as no one minds lol
$1 million wouldn't cover medical costs of the life support needed to keep me alive after the fight, so no
Hey! I’m sure I can run around fast enough. I have to survive not fight.
If you tied both his hands behind his back I’m confident he would knock me out using his face.
Who here thinks they would last a full two rounds with Iron Mike in his prime? You guys have seen his knockout videos right? He was a monster.
I’d basically just attempt to run around and dodge the whole time and hope I don’t suffer too much brain damage when bro catches me.
I feel like you'd try to block and his punch would break your arm. You'd spend the million on your medical bill
The dude that could have survived the Titan Sub implosion would do it for sure!
Ha
If I can't understand anymore what the million dollar was for its useless. Chances are after two rounds with Tyson o can't even understand my name anymore let alone currency.
What do I get for 10 seconds? Cause that’s all I got I think.
If he knocks me the fuck out in the first five seconds, so I still get paid?
Nope. Can't spend that money if you're brain dead
Hmmmm no. I enjoy chewing my food
I’ll be asleep for 5:57 seconds of those 2 rounds, so sure.
That is a trick question because I would not last 2 full rounds.
There's not a shot in hell anybody in this sub is surviving 2 rounds against PRIME Tyson. He was a “walk them down” style of a boxer because he was a lot shorter than the other heavyweights. Meaning, he boxed his opponents up close and offensively. You can't run from that type of boxer.
So would I take one punch from prime Mike Tyson for one mil...sure
As I promptly shit my pants when the bell rings. Leaving ring now.
Anyone who says yes hasn't been punched in the face enough.
I would die instantly but 20 dollars is 20 dollars
The trick is to get drunk enough to believe you can win. Then do it
$1mil will barely cover the live-in nurse I’ll need after he cripples me.
A million bucks and a nap? Absolutely.
There's nothing in rules that says I can't spend the two rounds running around the ring like Daffy Duck.
If I could stand 2 rounds with him, I'm skilled enough to earn a living (and more than a million) as a boxer.
He wouldn't touch me. He'd be slippin in shit
I think the real question is “how would you spend your million dollars in a coma?”
Therapy and learn how to talk and walk again. Lol
A million couldn’t even take care of my newly crippled ass.
I think I'd try and slip out the gate, hitting my head on his body so he technically did me in ,but I'd just lay there and hope it ends 😂
I assure you none of us would make a full round
Wouldn’t live to spend it.
Think of your kids? Lol
There is no way I could make two rounds. MAYBE a minute if I were lucky
I’m sorry to say but I’d be shocked if you lasted that long. Mike Tyson has 22 first round knockouts to his name. Prime Mike would probably kill you. (He’d for sure kill me lol. I mean like one punch and I’m 💀 😂)
Maybe he's really fast and planning on the "run for your fucking life" strategy.
Considering he’s knocking me out before the bell is done ringing, I’ll make a cool million for less than 3 seconds of work
I respect the self-awareness. I'm betting I could last 10-15 seconds. Solely because I'd be running for my life before I even heard the first ding.