Iron Mike was the world's greatest front runner. Never did he walk through fire and win. He never came from behind to win, and he never rose from the deck to win. Tyson was the product of careful matchmaking. He never fought Ibeabuchi, Bowe or Holyfield in his prime. He ducked Lewis and even refused to fight Foreman. That tells you something, Tyson was unproven in his prime and his best win was against Spinks, a career light heavyweight. Tyson got beat against every elite fighter he ever fought.
@@bobbyd1478 Lennox Lewis ducked Ibeabuchi and was incredibly lucky Ibeabuchi went away for almost 2 decades. Ike was the next great heavyweight fighter after Tyson in my opinion. Ibeabuchi would've KO'd Lewis and Holyfield and yes he would've defeated that past prime Tyson in the late 90s. Your anti Tyson bias is ridiculous and makes your opinion of him irrelevant.
@@bobbyd1478 foreman didn’t want to fight Mike. And Mike agreed. Get rid of the word duck. It didn’t make sense for them. And Tyson saw how the Holmes fight affected Ali. It was out of mutual respect bruv. Don’t try to steal that from them
@@kawikadee9670 probably shaken I was like that to I was beat by some guy and trained my ass off I was doing good against other people but when I faced the same guy from before I was in my head doubting myself felt like the first time it’s crazy fighters have to be strong physically and mentally maybe he just didn’t like the pressure
Throughout all of the controversy and poor behaviour, Tyson was one of the only ones to consistently praise his opponents skills and be honest about the times when he was hurt by them. It was something you didn't expect from such a brutal boxer. Like him or loathe him, an amazing boxer!
'Prime' Tyson was pre-Douglas Tyson which means pre-Feb 1990 Tyson. Well, Lewis turned pro in June 89 and although he had 7 fights in that 7 month period, by the time Tyson lost in Japan, Lewis was still fightin in leisure centres; untelevised bouts for which he was probably paid about 10 thousand a go. I’d be fascinated to know where a fledgling heavy who was still 7 fights from competing for his first title of any sort got those millions to pay the world heavyweight champion (Tyson) to avoid him!!! Back in 1996, Lewis was on the comeback trail following his shock KO defeat to Oliver McCall, which cost him his WBC heavyweight title. McCall had since lost the belt to Frank Bruno who was then knocked out by Tyson. At this point, Lewis was in line for a shot at his old crown and took legal action to force his opportunity. The New Jersey Supreme Court blocked Tyson’s plan to fight WBA champion Bruce Seldon, insisting that he must first face Lewis As a result, the two camps worked out a deal which saw the Brit receive a payment of $4million to allow Tyson vs Seldon to take place. Ultimately Tyson stopped Seldon in one round, claimed the WBA belt and then vacated the WBC, which Lewis won back in his rematch with McCall. Eventually, when the pair did meet in 2002, Lewis dominated and KOd Tyson. Lennox Lewis was the one everyone wanted to avoid at all cost. He was the the guy they all ducked be it through crooked ranking bodies or promoters protecting their fighters.
@@bobbyd1478 You can bring up the past accomplish all you like but a prime Mike Tyson would've destroyed Lennox Lewis, just like he did with all the other opponents who had the reach and height adventage. Lennox Lewis probably couldn't even take 5 punches from Mike Tyson back then let alone match his record of wins and KO's during those days.
@@ShadowYamoto imagine if Tyson abstained from sex the night before a fight and didn't do coke mike destroyed himself but we still love him his come back has been great
Taking 10+ knockout shots from Tyson in his prime and not being dead, let alone still fighting and keeping it competitive is nothing short of incredible! 👏
Well, that's because you errantly believe that Tyson was the hardest heavyweight puncher, ever ... he wasn't. There have been a number of heavyweights, throughout the years, who could bang harder than Tyson. Ever heard of George Foreman, Ron Lyle, Ernie Shavers, and most notably, Lennox Lewis?
@@X-Factor-22 You mean when he was 21-years-old? Most fighters aren't 'in their prime,' until they're closer to 30. But, all of the Tyson apologists act like Tyson was washed up and way over-the-hill when he was 30, and when he fought his toughest row of opponents ... like Holyfield and Lennox Lewis, although both of those fighters were older than Tyson.
@@MatewanMassacre I agree wholeheartedly with your comment and thanks for the correction about Tyson being not being in his prime during this particular fight. I’m a fan of Tyson and believe he’s made great contributions to the sport, but the way a lot of people make him out to be some type of deity just shows they don’t know as much about the sport as they think they do.
In a time when most of Mike's fights were over so fast you didn't dare look away even for a second, this man went the distance AND was still on his feet
'Prime' Tyson was pre-Douglas Tyson which means pre-Feb 1990 Tyson. Well, Lewis turned pro in June 89 and although he had 7 fights in that 7 month period, by the time Tyson lost in Japan, Lewis was still fightin in leisure centres; untelevised bouts for which he was probably paid about 10 thousand a go. I’d be fascinated to know where a fledgling heavy who was still 7 fights from competing for his first title of any sort got those millions to pay the world heavyweight champion (Tyson) to avoid him!!! Back in 1996, Lewis was on the comeback trail following his shock KO defeat to Oliver McCall, which cost him his WBC heavyweight title. McCall had since lost the belt to Frank Bruno who was then knocked out by Tyson. At this point, Lewis was in line for a shot at his old crown and took legal action to force his opportunity. The New Jersey Supreme Court blocked Tyson’s plan to fight WBA champion Bruce Seldon, insisting that he must first face Lewis As a result, the two camps worked out a deal which saw the Brit receive a payment of $4million to allow Tyson vs Seldon to take place. Ultimately Tyson stopped Seldon in one round, claimed the WBA belt and then vacated the WBC, which Lewis won back in his rematch with McCall. Eventually, when the pair did meet in 2002, Lewis dominated and KOd Tyson. Lennox Lewis was the one everyone wanted to avoid at all cost. He was the the guy they all ducked be it through crooked ranking bodies or promoters protecting their fighters.
I'm more of a UFC fan but gotta admit, watching Prime Tyson's highlights is what got me interested in combat sports, guy was an artist in the ring, there are other boxers like Lennox who reached greater heights and have better records but no one is as exciting as Tyson IMO despite only being in his prime for 3 years.
a lot of people also genuinely hated ali due to what he stood for from a civil rights standpoint as well, bro made the stance against the vietnam war and joined the nation of islam
The way Tony Tucker fought Tyson that night , was like watching Apólo Creed fighting Rocky 1. The showmanship,the confidence, the skills…. Everything was there that night. Everything ! He fought like a true Spartan!!!
You must 11years old and movie lover. Apollo Creed and Rocky Balboa they're not real persons. There's actual difference to live through your life and face the difficulties and even have success than just make up stories and imagine about movie characters. " talk the talk and WALK the WALK", do remember that verse? Think about it.
@@chello70 No I will not get hypothetical or methaphorical life even if thousends of elevens of movie lovers tells me to do so. There are a lot of better movies than Rocky by the way... Usual suspects, Last of the mohicans, easy rider and graduate... You should check it out... Yes those are old I have not watch movies for long long time I rather watch good boxing... Now get a movie
I remember before this fight being really worried Tyson might lose. Tucker was a great boxer. He went the distance Vs a PRIME Mike Tyson and also went 12 vs Lennox Lewis in 1998. Major respect. A bad ass in the ring with an iron jaw.
Tucker fought Lennox Lewis - the only fighter to ever drop him - in 1993, for the vacant WBC title. This was after Riddick Bowe won a decision over Holyfield, and Lewis had knocked out Razor Ruddock - the 2 were supposed to meet. But Riddick Bowe wanted no part of Lennox Lewis, and instead fought Michael Dokes and Jesse Ferguson, rather than give Lewis a title shot. So, the WBC stripped Bowe of the title, and Lennox Lewis squared off against Tony Tucker for the vacated belt.
Tucker always said he broke his hand early in the fight. Dude stood up to the baddest man on earth at the time and was still standing when it was over. Mad respect. Had some demons that cost him his potential place in history.
@@JammyfishNo, Tucker didn’t have issues with drugs or crime or anything like that. He had a good boxing career and retired without many injuries. Nothing salacious.
Some of those blows look absolutely lethal. Majority of us would be out cold or dead with one punch like that. Respect for still standing for that long.
Soft spoken Lennox Lewis at his best was the total package. When he fought seriously he was pretty much untouchable. The last undisputed Super Heavyweight champion emerged as cream of the crop against some of the biggest punchers in Heavyweight history. Lewis avenged his only two defeats by knockout. He didn't make excuses for his only two losses, he said, "It's Heavyweights, you can get caught, but i won the rematches in style," and, "Show me a Heavyweight Champion without a loss and i'll show you a fighter that fought a lot of nobodies." 57 year old Lennox is the GOAT. To hear him talk so clearly and eloquently after going up against 18 Heavyweight Champions is remarkable. The 18 HW Champions Lewis faced: Vitali Klitschko, Evander Holyfield, Mike Tyson, Shannon Briggs, Frank Bruno, Tony Tucker, Hasim Rahman, Oliver McCall, Mike Weaver, Henry Akinwande, Tommy Morrison and Ray Mercer were later recognized as WBO champions, British HW champion Gary Mason, European HW champion Jean Chanet, Commonwealth HW champion Derek Williams, Canada HW champion Razor Ruddock, IBF/WBF HW champion Michael Grant, and WBC International HW champion David Tua...*[[ technically not all were 'World' champions but champions nonetheless ]]. Other notable mentions; Olympic HW Gold medalist Tyrell Briggs, Andrew Golota, Zeljko Mavrovic, Frans Botha and Phil Jackson. Name another Super Heavyweight with a better resume? Only person i can think of is Wladimir Klitschko.
How did I never know about this fight? Thanks a lot for sharing this with us. I also appreciate how you guys showed so much respect to him regarding his later career and personal life.
@@issymills6455 I get the impression that you don't understand the meaning of either pejorative you just used. Therefore, it is categorically impossible to offer a coherent rebuttal because whatever the hell you're trying to say is built on misunderstood English. Have a wonderful day, @issymills6455!
@@issymills6455 I want to like this comment because it is actually getting pretty entertaining lol. You ask a question with incorrect punctuation, then answer the question yourself. I can only imagine what that internal monolog must have sounded like...
Tyson match up with guys who were way out his league on paper. A true genius, turned his disadvantage into an advantage. Thanks to the mastermind Cus Demato📌💯🙌🔥
That is cool, for Mike to admit that he was also a good fighter and that he did have some edge on him early on. Its a big difference from many of todays fighters... That humility despite him being well known for being a superb boxer is really telling, and it deserves some recognition and respect.
Fair credit to him, he went the distance with him, and in an era when Tyson was considered invincible. It shows the true class of a boxer, who went toe to toe with Mike Tyson, and was not knocked out, or looked like he was in any serious trouble during the fight. Having the skill, experience and also the necessary power, to trouble Tyson, in the earlier rounds, was something that few other boxers were able to do. Most boxers were so intimidated by Tyson, that they rarely lasted long in the ring, but Tucker came to fight, and put up a great performance. No shame in losing the fight over a points decision.
@John Anderson On the best day Chuck Wepner ever had, he wouldn't have a snowballs chance in Hell going the distance with Tyson, OR Tucker, for that matter
When Mike was so humble and respectful. Once Cus' died, he was devastated. His mentor gone and the journey to his dark side began. Glad to see he's gotten help.
I like the endcap of the video: the sort of epilogue about Tucker. Clearly he's done alright and while he may have lacked drive later, he still made it much farther than most and made a good, stable life for himself. Cheers.
And the guy was smart to fight mostly weak fighters outside of Tyson and Lewis, saved himself a lot of brain damage. Is the big money he could have made fighting all the top guys really worth the decreased quality of life later on.
@@ckobo84 Kinda sounds like the Bob Sapp strategy, make as much money as you can while sustaining as little damage to yourself as possible. Except Todd doesn't throw his fights against tomato cans. His wife is also damn hot.
I want to know what Tucker said when he got knocked down for the 1st time by Lennox Lewis. Maybe : "Oops... you got it man. But... you wouldn't knock me out". 😀
All I got to say is they will never see another heavyweight BOXER like MIKE TYSON he's the best & thanks to his trainer he will always be thunder in the spotlight
Tyson fought with a combination of skill, talent, discipline and power. He was the most formidable boxer of the generation. Tucker was a mountain of a man who fought with the speed of a lightweight. This really was a great fight. Something I always appreciated about Tyson was that he would give honest reviews of his opponents before and after a fight. It seems that nowadays ego gets in the way of that.
I can't overstate how legendary it is to be such a talented and powerful fighter that even your opponents get respect just for stepping into the ring. Imagine being on such a level that you can elevate a man by defeating him.
@@BooBooDaFoo330they really don't tho, Tyson was an incredible boxer and amazing athlete for his size who hit way harder than people like you will ever give him credit for
@@thediaz07 Iron Mike was the world's greatest front runner. Never did he walk through fire and win. He never came from behind to win, and he never rose from the deck to win. Tyson was the product of careful matchmaking. He never fought Ibeabuchi, Bowe or Holyfield in his prime. He ducked Lewis and even refused to fight Foreman. That tells you something, Tyson was unproven in his prime and his best win was against Spinks, a career light heavyweight. Tyson got beat against every elite fighter he ever fought.
@@thediaz07 'Prime' Tyson was pre-Douglas Tyson which means pre-Feb 1990 Tyson. Well, Lewis turned pro in June 89 and although he had 7 fights in that 7 month period, by the time Tyson lost in Japan, Lewis was still fightin in leisure centres; untelevised bouts for which he was probably paid about 10 thousand a go. I’d be fascinated to know where a fledgling heavy who was still 7 fights from competing for his first title of any sort got those millions to pay the world heavyweight champion (Tyson) to avoid him!!! Back in 1996, Lewis was on the comeback trail following his shock KO defeat to Oliver McCall, which cost him his WBC heavyweight title. McCall had since lost the belt to Frank Bruno who was then knocked out by Tyson. At this point, Lewis was in line for a shot at his old crown and took legal action to force his opportunity. The New Jersey Supreme Court blocked Tyson’s plan to fight WBA champion Bruce Seldon, insisting that he must first face Lewis As a result, the two camps worked out a deal which saw the Brit receive a payment of $4million to allow Tyson vs Seldon to take place. Ultimately Tyson stopped Seldon in one round, claimed the WBA belt and then vacated the WBC, which Lewis won back in his rematch with McCall. Eventually, when the pair did meet in 2002, Lewis dominated and KOd Tyson. Lennox Lewis was the one everyone wanted to avoid at all cost. He was the the guy they all ducked be it through crooked ranking bodies or promoters protecting their fighters. He is without question a top 5 Heavyweight imo.
Its amazing that Tyson was such a good tactician as well as being just a menacing puncher. He came across a really good fighter and had a long term plan to win instead of his usual blitz.
That's the problem with him. If he couldn't just drop you straight in the first round or two, he'd strategize and beat the everloving piss out of you until you did drop. Dude was a knockout artist with an absurd fight IQ with the power to back it all up. Once in a lifetime champion.
He proved himself to be a great fighter. Why potentially destroy his life for something that would have amounted to an ego trip. Smart fighter, and ultimately, a smart man.
Tony Tucker was a warrior man. He gave us some of the best fights of the late 80s and early 90s. Dude never backed down from the toughest opponents. If he had just landed a few more clean shots in this fight it could have been a W for him. Buster Douglas really took what Tucker did well in this fight and amplified it, finally finding a way to topple Tyson. Tucker really deserves to not be one of those boxers just forgotten to time. If he had been in another era that didn't have all time greats like Tyson, Holyfield, and Lewis he could have had a monster career.
I love watching those old boxing matches when Mike Tyson fought tall fighters. The taller fighters tried to use their reach advantage, but Mike would time perfectly an approach that took away that advantage, and once up close, the advantage was always Mike’s.
Mike Tyson was the ultimate display of the warrior spirit. The rise, the fall from grace, and then the rise again lol. There will never be another Mike Tyson and Cus D'Amato. Forever Champion 🏆
What rise again? He lost to Douglas, went to prison, won a title, won a title through a fighter diving, vacated his legitimate title to avoid Lennox lewis, and then got his arse handed to him by Evander. In all of the 1990s, he was champion for a year total. He never successfully defended a title in the 90s It was a frankly pathetic second title reign
@@Onefourtyfour "the rise, fall and rise again". I said what rise again. What about beating peter mcneely or winning a title with a dive, or never succesfully defending a title in the 90s, or losing to a cruserweight twice, or ducking Lennox twice in one year is a "rise again",
@@dylanburston7453 Mike owns one of the most successful marijuana edible companies in the country making well over $600,000 a month from that alone. Do you need help moving furniture around in your mom's basement?
True. He got to the top, went 12 FUCKING ROUNDS AGAINST PRIME TYSON, then secured the bag and now can live comfortably without to many lasting injuries. That in itself is legendary, just when it compares to Tyson it looks.... dull. Dude got it made, and can live out his life a legend.
6:57 The sweat being blasted off of Tucker’s face when Tyson’s shot lands is what told me all I needed to know about the monstrous power of Tyson’s punches… 🤯
This guy actually seems very talented. Sure he ran out of ideas/options as it went on, but Tyson was a mastermind with brutal force and speed, an all time great in his prime. Tucker looked pretty impressive early on.
This is how a championship fight should be, respect for each other, both came to fight, no dirty tricks, put on a great show, both of them were in their prime as boxers and as men
Yeah man. Nowadays we egg shaped weights, gypsy curses, spiked drinks, bought refs, bought cornermen, and heavy costumes. Oh wait... That was all from one fight.
Wow, thank you for this, I had forgotten all about TNT Tucker and this match-up! He must've been a crazy talent to box that good despite lackng in desire!
Most people forget that Tyson was barely 21 years old here, a kid basically, yet he already commanded such a terrifying aura. Always remember his age during his prime when putting his career in perspective. 10 months later he destroyed Spinks , and that was his last fight under Kevin Rooney, which was effectively the end of "prime Mike", all at 21 years, 11 months, and 28 days old. Tyson's development as a boxer effectively ended as soon as he left Rooney. Such a shame, just imagine what he could've achieved had they stayed together as Cuz D'Amato had wanted.
@@DrLoverLover Do you realize Tyson fought nearly 40 fights between 1985 and 1990? That is what most fighters do their entire careers, let alone over a decade; Tyson fought more than the average pro fighter career, in less than five years.
@@DrLoverLover Exactly. Whenever Tyson fan boys talk about him, they ALWAYS have to use the word "prime". Well, compare that to Pacquiao. Pacquiao got KO'd TWICE early in his career, but, both times, he rose back to become champion again. He then loses to Morales, yet he comes back to become champion AGAIN. He then loss to Bradley, then, in his very next fight, he got KO'd BADLY by Marquez, yet PacMan comes back to become champion AGAIN. He then loses to Mayweather, but then rises back to become champion AGAIN. He then loses to Jeff Horn, yet he rises back to become champion AGAIN. Manny Pacquiao's "prime" lasted over 20-years. From 1998 until 2019, Manny Pacquiao was a world champion in a major organization. No one makes excuses for Pacquiao's losses because they don't need to.
@@DeeperImageAutomotive And? He made the choice to fight that many fighters. Let me ask you this - were those fighters good fighters? Have you bothered to check who those fighters were and what their records were? I didn't think so.
@@DeeperImageAutomotive He had some of his weakest performances under Kevin Rooney, Looked poor against james tillis, james smith, mitch green, jose ribalta.. didn't look good in this fight either against the well conditioned but mediocre Tucker. Also failed to qaulify for the 1984 olympics under Rooney. Tyson was at his best when he was in shape and motivated. No legit time stamps on his prime.. He looked and did better against bruno in 1996 then he did in 1989.
Much respect for Tony Tucker, he was a smart fighter, he knew he wasn't going to be able to beat Tyson at some point during the fight so he started fighting to survive, he showed a lot of endurance after receiving hard punches from Tyson that sent many other Tyson's opponents to the canvas.
9:50-10:05 Lewis vs Tucker is one example that showed Lewis's chin was not made of glass like many people said. He took some Tucker's best punches and stood still. He even became the 1st man who knocked down Tucker for the 1st time.
When I hear Mike Tyson say "he was intimidating" I know he's just had a tough fight! For him to get into Mike's head! That was usually what won Tyson his fights. *KNOWING* he was going to smash through whatever was in front of him! But this guy got in his head, which would have definitely taken some of his confidence. Which is why we didn't see Iron Mike unleashing hell on this guy's body with fast, devastating blows! You can lose a fight before you start if someone is inside your head enough. And even Mike Tyson had his doubts as shown here. It's nice to know he wasn't actually a T-800.
Before he was champ, I had heard about Mike Tyson but figured it was just hype. I saw a news clip of him working out (similar to the one that starts this video) and I thought to myself - OMG, this guy will be the champion as long as he wants. His speed and power were incredible.
It’s incredible how many careers Tyson has ended. We could had a whole bunch of different heavyweight champions, all fighting it all out with each other on more or less equal levels, if Mike had never existed. He disposed of them like they would deal with you and me. That is absolutely astonishing. Mike Tyson, single-handedly changed the entire history of boxing and what it could had been.
What a stupid thought. We all enjoy watching young Mike, but you can't change history just by being part of it. If Mike doesn't exist who's to say someone else doesn't rise to the occasion. Hell, you literally just learned about Tony Tucker, a skilled, big, fast heavyweight. No Tyson omg maaaaaaaaaybe he gets inspired to train and fight to his potential? Or maaaaaaaaaybe 10 other variations of things happen. "Maybe" doesn't belong in boxing, moron
Another horribly dumb comment in the same string of comments no less lmao. Tyson and Cus are a dream match. There has never been another fighter with such natural gifts to fight a Cus style. Tyson was pitbull built, extremely quick feet, strong, and most of all quick with the dips. He could swim without getting wet, all at heavyweight. He was smaller, but made even that grand detriment a strength. No idea why I'm even responding to a retard that doesn't even know his name is "Cus" though 😂
@@stellviahohenheim Cus always said, that he had the perfect blue print for the ultimate fighter and he knew exactly how to shape that chosen one. He was waiting all his life for someone like mike. This has to be probably the best tuned boxer, trainer match in the history of boxing. Tbh, even finer than Ali and Dundee
Man Tony Tucker could take a punch, and deliver the counter punches. Tyson knocked out guys in the 1st/2nd round with those haymakers. Tucker took them the whole fight. First time I've seen this fight. Tucker traded blows with Tyson the entire fight when Tyson was at the top of his game. Mad respect to him.
Newbie here but it's interesting that in the 80s 90s there we're lots of pound of difference. Big difference to todays rules. Just realizing this just gives Mike Tyson more credit to his greatness.
I remember in the 90s Tyson was painted as a villain after the ear biting incident. Now he is a big sweetheart, I have always put Tyson in the top 3 boxers of all time.
Tyson raised the profile of the sport to a whole new level. I hope he inspires our young generation that with talent indurance and hard work you can be the best in the world.
