I have this argument with some people over time.

I watched one documentary on board a BA flight recently and it got me thinking that there was no One like Iron Mike.

I think Tyson was the greatest given the convincing way he won all his bouts at his prime,

My Dad feels its Mohammed Ali who was the Heavyweight Champ back then.

Some guy I met lately said its Rocky Marciano who never lost a fight.

Who do you think is the best?.

The moderator can put a poll so we can view peoples opinion. This might be skewed because a lot of young people around only saw Tyson of the 3

Mike Tyson is the greatest of them all.
Mohammed Ali?? His fights get too long and boring.
Tyson puts them down before his spectators even get to their seats.

The stint in Prison messed up his career.

you have to give to the italian, rocky marciano. part of being the greatest in any sport is longetivity, one reason on one mentions gale sayers as the best running back of all-time. it is rocky marciano. jack johnson deserves consideration too.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jack_Johnson_(boxer)

Jack Johnson? I never heard of him. When I checked the link you gave now I read he lost 14 times thats a lot though he had more bouts than any of the 3.

But I wont judge him cos I don't really know him.

Mike Tyson does it for me.
He became a heavyweight world champion at the tender age of 20.
I doubt anyone can match that feat.

jack johnson revolutionized the boxing game. he invented the defensive style that is used by the likes of floyd mayweather today. mike tyson fell off way too early.

bawomolo:

jack johnson revolutionized the boxing game. the invented the defensive style that is used by the likes of floyd mayweather today. mike tyson fell off way too early.

Fell off way too early cos he went to Prison for THREE YEARS when he was supposed to be in his PRIME.
How often did he train in Prison?? Loss of form and the emotional damage!!!
Trust me, Tyson was a special talent and i love the way he handled his business.

I will give it to mike tyson, that guy is great considering all the trouble he passed through. As for ali, he is good also but he was majorly the cause of his current disease. and rocky well i just play him 3rd

Everyone is entitled to his opinion but i would still be chanting Ali Buma ye till i am old and grey

Muhammad Ali was the best ever period.That dude revolutionized boxing and it wouldn't be what it is today if not for him he brought glamour,pizazz and class to what was an otherwise boring sport

Rumble in the Jungle
Thriller in Manilla

These where classic fights that defined the Sport of Boxing and made it what it is today

He was also one of the few fighters that suffered defeat and still came back every single time time.Mike Tyson never came back and Rocky Marciano never faced adversity

Ali faced it all from being banned because of his refusal to go to the Vietnam war and all and lets not forget the fact he was an Olympian

Ali was the Greatest there's no contest

sugar ray leaonard, floyd mayweather not in the convo, why only the heavyweights

Greatness can be put in different contexts.
For me,greatness in sports would have to do with each era.And if in your era,you were able to do something that defined that era,then you're great.
Marciano really didn't have any competitors,except for Joe Louis who had come out of retirement to fight him.But to put up an unbeaten record definitely stands him up for the claim as the greatest.
Ali had many great fights:none more memorable than the Rumble in the Jungle.There was also  the rivalry with Ken Norton Jr, Joe Frazier and Leon Spinks.I think Ali,with the rivalries (which took two,three fights to settle scores) made boxing into a phenomenon and brought it to the level that it presently is on right now.Thrilla in Manilla-my dad has the tape of that fight on Betamax!Awesome fight.
Tyson swept all befoire him before pressing his self-destruct button,but when all was said and done,he was clearly the dominant performer in his own time.
But I give Ali the edge in terms of what he did for the sport.I think he made it more global than anyone.There was an air of showmanship that made his fights a must-see.I also think he made the pre-fight press conference a major part of boxing.
And his fights were legendary.
His first bout with Frazier-(which at the time was the most anticipated bout).
His rematch with Frazier was also great,but the most memorable was the afore-mentioned Thiller in Manilla.
Then there were fights with Ken Norton where he broke his jaw in the first one but lost on points.
And the Rumble.No one can ever forget that,as a boxing fan.
I think Marciano and Tyson really didn't have classics where there was a level of hype and anticipation similar to Ali's.
I think he's the greatest.
He was the first person to be world heavyweight champion three times,and we also forget that he was out of boxing because he refused to be drafted to Vietnam.Coming back and being succesful is certainly greatness in simple terms.That's why he and Michael Jordan will tie for my greatest ever sportsman, but that's for another thread.

Ali's era had the most talent, i think.
Foreman,Norton,Frazier,Leon Spinks,Larry holmes, bad-ass whoopers who would kill the present day heavyweights if they got in the ring with them right now.
And he became champion by beating someone most people thought was unstoppable,not past their prime or over-rated (Sonny Liston).
I think Tyson got bored with boxing.The way he put himself to the sport after losing to Buster
Douglas tells me that.
Rocky, don't know too much about him.But he will definitely be no1 in a lot of people's eyes.
But I think Ali was the greatest.Boxing's hype,money and probably status is in a large part due to his efforts.

But we're forgeting something:this is just the heavyweight division:there have been great middle-weights too-Hagler,Leonard,Hearns,

Tyson made his peers look like idiots I can remember him almost sending lgood boxers like Holmes, Spinks and Bruno to the hospital.

He was so dominant that No one could stand for more than 3 rounds with Iron Mike.

He became heavy weight Champ at 19 without any Olympics or lightweight experience!!!!!

Eastbay:

Ali's era had the most talent, i think.
Foreman,Norton,Frazier,Leon Spinks,Larry holmes, bad-ass whoopers who would kill the present day heavyweights if they got in the ring with them right now.
And he became champion by beating someone most people thought was unstoppable,not past their prime or over-rated (Sonny Liston).
I think Tyson got bored with boxing.The way he put himself to the sport after losing to Buster
Douglas tells me that.
Rocky, don't know too much about him.But he will definitely be no1 in a lot of people's eyes.
But I think Ali was the greatest.Boxing's hype,money and probably status is in a large part due to his efforts.

Totally dude!!!

Tyson never fully recovered from his beating by Buster Douglas what kind of a champion does not recover from a setback this was something Ali did time and time again

This is one of my favorite line of his
If i predict and i know the score i will be Champ of the World in 64

dayokanu:

Tyson made his peers look like idiots I can remember him almost sending lgood boxers like Holmes, Spinks and Bruno to the hospital.

He was so dominant that No one could stand for more than 3 rounds with Iron Mike.

He became heavy weight Champ at 19 without any Olympics or lightweight experience!!!!!

His peers where whack!! Larry Holmes and Spinks where past their prime Bruno was an average Joe you can not compare them to warriors like Joe Frazier and George Foreman how did Tyson fare when he met his first decent opposition in Buster Douglas? a boxer that can not last more than 5 rounds did he survive Lennox Lewis and Evander Holyfield?

Dead wrong. Sugar Ray Robinson is by far the best.

And by the way, Tyson was scared of Holyfield. He ducked him for 2 years.

A-40:

Totally dude!!!

Tyson never fully recovered from his beating by Buster Douglas what kind of a champion does not recover from a setback this was something Ali did time and time again

This is one of my favorite line of his
If i predict and i know the score i will be Champ of the World in 64

Did Ali go to Prison?
How can u say Tyson never recovered from his beating by Buster Douglas when he went straight to Prison after the fight?
Do u know how much he lost in those 3 precious years in Prison??
Abeg, this argument is flawed.

His peers where whack!! Larry Holmes and Spinks where past their prime Bruno was an average Joe you can not compare them to warriors like Joe Frazier and George Foreman how did Tyson fare when he met his first decent opposition in Buster Douglas? a boxer that can not last more than 5 rounds did he survive Lennox Lewis and Evander Holyfield?

His peers were wack or Tyson made em wack??
So Ali is the greatest. . . . . .Ali who relies on the ropes for stamina??
Using his big mouth to fight rather than his fists. . . . .A40, i am disappointed in you.
Do u think Ali in his prime would BEAT Mike Tyson in his prime?? Ali's wife would chop your head off if u suggest the scenario.
U wanna kill Cassius Clay??

Buster Douglas appears decent to you know because you have the benefit of hindsight. If tyson had beaten him you. would have said the same thing about Buster Douglas?

Tyson on the eve of the fight with Buster Douglas was bingeing at a Nite club in Tokyo meaning he did not take the bout seriously.

Buster was just lucky remember he was knocked out by Tyson earlier in the bout That was a controversial moment as it was said that Buster was on the canvas for 14 seconds.

When He comboed Tyson and Tyson fell, Tyson wanted to continue He was searching for his mouth guard till the refs count . Buster lasted less than 6 months as champ!! What a fluke!!

Tyson came back and beat everyone in his path including number 2 razor Ruddock and was scheduled to fight Evander in Fall before he was convicted of rape.

Tyson never avoided Evander!!! and when they met later, Holyfield was not fair and he constantly headbutted Tyson which the ref overlooked

Tyson did avoid Evander. Evander was chasing Tyson his whole life but Tyson refused to fight him until Evander was in possession of the belt.

All of you so-called boxing officionado's are calling many names but no one is calling the only name who is undoubtedly the greatest of all time - Sugar Ray Robinson. Even Ali said that Robinson is the greatest boxer. Ali is great, but the greatest should not be losing to Joe Frazier, especially when you consider the mauling that Foreman handed to Frasier. As for Mike Tyson, he can forget it. He was great at his explosive best but longevity is part of greatness. For many years he was scared of Holyfield, even before he went to prison, refusing to fight Holyfield for 2 years when Holyfield was the mandatory challenger. As for Marciano, he fought in the days when there were not many great fighters.

Sugar Ray Robinson voted the greatest of all time by countless boxing historians, from Ring Magazine to ESPN to The International Boxing Research Association:

http://espn.go.com/sportscentury/features/00016439.html

http://coxscorner.tripod.com/robinson_p4p.html

http://www.eastsideboxing.com/news.php?p=8346&more=1

dayokanu:

Buster Douglas appears decent to you know because you have the benefit of hindsight. If tyson had beaten him you. would have said the same thing about Buster Douglas?

Tyson on the eve of the fight with Buster Douglas was bingeing at a night club in Tokyo meaning he did not take the bout seriously.

Buster was just lucky remember he was knocked out by Tyson earlier in the bout That was a controversial moment as it was said that Buster was on the canvas for 14 seconds.

When He comboed Tyson and Tyson fell, Tyson wanted to continue He was searching for his mouth guard till the refs count . Buster lasted less than 6 months as champ!! What a fluke!!

Tyson came back and beat everyone in his path including number 2 razor Ruddock and was scheduled to fight Evander in Fall before he was convicted of rape.

Tyson never avoided Evander!!! and when they met later, Holyfield was not fair and he constantly headbutted Tyson which the ref overlooked

I agree with you 100%.
Even at this point, i cannot believe anyone would doubt Tyson's fighting skills.
Does he even give his opponents the time n space to work out their tactics.

Round one: Tyson just struts to his opponent, not caring or dodging punches and he just looks for that killer punch and BANG!!!
The Busta Douglas fight was too controversial. . . . . .Tyson decked that nigga in round 8 but the ref allowed him to recover. . . .
When the match continued and Tyson was about going for the kill. . . . . .The bell tolled. . . .I nearly cried.

Mike Tyson is the greatest boxer that have ever lived. . . .His behaviour outside the ring is not the issue here.
The crux of the matter is could anyone get close to him in his PRIME??

~Sauron~:

Did Ali go to Prison?
How can u say Tyson never recovered from his beating by Buster Douglas when he went straight to Prison after the fight?
Do u know how much he lost in those 3 precious years in Prison??
Abeg, this argument is flawed.

His peers were wack or Tyson made em wack??
So Ali is the greatest. . . . . .Ali who relies on the ropes for stamina??
Using his big mouth to fight rather than his fists. . . . .A40, i am disappointed in you.
Do u think Ali in his prime would BEAT Mike Tyson in his prime?? Ali's wife would chop your head off if u suggest the scenario.
U want to kill Cassius Clay??

Ali didn't rape anyone so why did he have to go to Prison is it our fault that he was convicted?
Tyson until his loss in that fight had not faced adversity he had not had his authority questioned and that was the turning point Tyson was exposed as a fighter that could not go beyond 5 rounds he was almost like what we would call in bedroom parlance A one-minute man he was full of brawn no brains i just want to ask you why he didn't have an answer for the likes of Holyfield and Lewis

Name one notable fighter in the Tyson era is it Tony Tucker or Trevor Berbick? could Tony Tucker step in the ring with Sonny Liston,Joe Frazier or George Foreman? you must be kidding me here
Ali would murder Tyson in the ring his endurance,speed and ability to go beyond 5 rounds in any fight would hold him in good stead
Ali talked the talk and walked the walk

A champion that does not bounce back from challenges and set-backs is not worthy to be called a champion

dayokanu:

Buster Douglas appears decent to you know because you have the benefit of hindsight. If tyson had beaten him you. would have said the same thing about Buster Douglas?

Tyson on the eve of the fight with Buster Douglas was bingeing at a night club in Tokyo meaning he did not take the bout seriously.

Buster was just lucky remember he was knocked out by Tyson earlier in the bout That was a controversial moment as it was said that Buster was on the canvas for 14 seconds.

When He comboed Tyson and Tyson fell, Tyson wanted to continue He was searching for his mouth guard till the refs count . Buster lasted less than 6 months as champ!! What a fluke!!

Tyson came back and beat everyone in his path including number 2 razor Ruddock and was scheduled to fight Evander in Fall before he was convicted of rape.

Tyson never avoided Evander!!! and when they met later, Holyfield was not fair and he constantly headbutted Tyson which the ref overlooked

How can a boxer not take a bout seriously? is that not recipe for a disaster was he not cruising and boozing for a bruising?

Holyfield head-butted him in the second fight i agree but not in the first fight,What of Lewis did he head-butt him too?

Ibime:

Tyson did avoid Evander. Evander was chasing Tyson his whole life but Tyson refused to fight him until Evander was in possession of the belt.
. Ali is great, but the greatest should not be losing to Joe Frazier, especially when you consider the mauling that Foreman handed to Frasier. As for Mike Tyson, he can forget it. He was great at his explosive best but longevity is part of greatness. For many years he was scared of Holyfield, even before he went to prison, refusing to fight Holyfield for 2 years when Holyfield was the mandatory challenger.

This only shows you how competitive the Ali era was anybody could beat anybody didn't Ali go on to beat Foreman?

@A40,

Read about the Holyfield bouts or watch it again. From the first bout, Holyfield head butted him even the Tyson camp lodged a complaint after the first bout.

You are screaming about Buster Douglas. Who is Buster Douglas? How many bouts did he win as Champ? Because he defeated an unprepared/ overconfident

Tyson does not mean he is Good. Tyson took the bout with levity Tyson was 42-1 favourite to beat Douglas so he went to club partying

He actually decked Douglas but the ref was shady and he let Douglas off the hook

@Ibime,

Tyson was due to fight Holyfield in the fall and he was arrested in July?  Does that amount to avoiding Maybe you meant he deliberately raped and went to Jail to avoid the fall date with Holyfield.

Greatness means using your time well.

E.g
In football, Ronaldo Lima played top flight football for like 5 full seasons and he was named one of the greatest.

No one lasts for ever how many season did Ronaldinho spend in the limelight? 2003-2006 and he is entrenched in history

dayokanu:

Greatness means using your time well.

E.g
In football, Ronaldo Lima played top flight football for like 5 full seasons and he was named one of the greatest.

No one lasts for ever how many season did Ronaldinho spend in the limelight? 2003-2006 and he is entrenched in history

Kaka spent 7 months in the limelight and won all the major individual awards.

Tyson would murder Ali in any boxing ring.
His left hook had the the same impact a 50kg bag would have if it hits the face at the speed of light.
If Tyson gets lucky and manages to hit ALI square on his jaw, his parkinson's disease woulda started right on the spot, instantly!!!
My dayze. . . . . . . .What are these people talking about??

Ali was humane. Tyson was an animal.

Ask yourself whom would you like to be locked in a room with Ali in his prime or Tyson in his prime.

I think tyson should be sent to discipline A-40 and Ibime for this rubbish they are saying.

Tyson is the most feared boxer.

Ali that would be dancing around and slapping the opponent like they were having pre-intimacy.

I don't rate Mohammed Ali at all.
All the hype around him was just because the journalists love him.
He raps for them, boasts like a drunkard and get em laughing so why won't they HYPE him?

@dayokanu
Buster Douglas may not have been good but he was decent and as for the Holyfield fight i watched it there was no head-butting whatsoever he head-butted him in the second fight i agree but not in the first i repeat

My point is how can someone really be called the greatest when he never recovered the belts he lost even Klitschko came out of a four year hiatus and beat the living daylights out of Samuel Peters if Tyson had managed such feat i would have agreed with you to an extent but the point is he didn't

~Sauron~:

Kaka spent 7 months in the limelight and won all the major individual awards.

Tyson would murder Ali in any boxing ring.
His left hook had the the same impact a 50kg bag would have if it hits the face at the speed of light.
If Tyson gets lucky and manages to hit ALI square on his jaw, his parkinson's disease woulda started right on the spot, instantly!!!
My dayze. . . . . . . .What are these people talking about??

Fallacy!!!
If only his punches had the same impact on the likes of Holyfield and Lewis you would have scored a point there
Tyson fought with mediocre opposition period.I would have loved to see him with Liston,Foreman and Norton
50kg bag my pitch-black ass

dayokanu:

Ali was humane. Tyson was an animal.

Ask yourself whom would you like to be locked in a room with Ali in his prime or Tyson in his prime.

I think tyson should be sent to discipline A-40 and Ibime for this rubbish they are saying.

Tyson is the most feared boxer.

Ali that would be dancing around and slapping the opponent like they were having pre-intimacy.

Tyson was an untrained animal! he was like the dinosaur with a gigantic size but with brains the size of a pea

If i lasted 5 rounds i would stand a 60-40 chance of beating Mike

Try telling that to Holyfield and Lennox .

I am not sure the likes of Foreman,Liston and Frazier would agree with you

5 rounds with Iron Mike? You would be cremated of the ring because all mortuary would reject your body. No one would be able to recognise your carcass

Why did the Tyson camp complain about Head butts after the first fight ? The ref did not even deny the head butt, he said they were accidental.

Recover belts from Prison? He was scheduled to fight Evander for the belts before he went to Jail. When he came back he had some belts I think IBF he wanted to unify the titles before Evander played unfairly against him.

Evander is a faker. Watch his fights with Lennox those are the most boring fights in Heavyweight history when 2 bouts were decided by unanimous points They were just hugging one another like long lost gay Partners

tyson

I dunno any boxer born of a woman that coulda lasted 2 rounds when TYSON was in his PRIME.
He was an animal. . . . . .No boring tactics of stick and move.
Tyson walks through the punches the opponents are throwing and digs out a left hook or an uppercut stinger. . . .
Ali, Foreman, Fraizer, Sonny Liston or fuckever woulda DIED of brain damage if they had ventured it.
Who becomes the heavyweight champion of the world at 20?? ONLY AN ANIMAL.

~Sauron~:

I don't know any boxer born of a woman that coulda lasted 2 rounds when TYSON was in his PRIME.
He was an animal. . . . . .No boring tactics of stick and move.
Tyson walks through the punches the opponents are throwing and digs out a left hook or an uppercut stinger. . . .
Ali, Foreman, Fraizer, Sonny Liston or fuckever woulda DIED of brain damage if they had ventured it.
Who becomes the heavyweight champion of the world at 20?? ONLY AN ANIMAL.

Abeg make we hear word bo!!
Why didn't Lewis and Evander suffer any Brain damage he fought against farces and chickens who where scared to face him in the ring we all saw what happened when he faced real men .Tyson was simply a bully a great bully at that

dayokanu:

5 rounds with Iron Mike? You would be cremated of the ring because all mortuary would reject your body. No one would be able to recognise your carcass

Why did the Tyson camp complain about Head butts after the first fight ? The ref did not even deny the head butt, he said they were accidental.

Recover belts from Prison? He was scheduled to fight Evander for the belts before he went to Jail. When he came back he had some belts I think IBF he wanted to unify the titles before Evander played unfairly against him.

Evander is a faker. Watch his fights with Lennox those are the most boring fights in Heavyweight history when 2 bouts were decided by unanimous points They were just hugging one another like long lost gay Partners

I would rope-a-dope, head-butt and even bite his ears if i had to two can play that game

Because they where bunch of excuses giving ninnies who could not take their defeat in good fate.Holyfield was the better boxer in both fights

Ok he recovered a belt from Bruce Seldon i think a chicken that could not last for 2 minutes

A world and Olympic Champion cannot be called a faker he belongs to the privileged few the likes of Ali,Lennox and Teofilo Stevenson are you forgetting that both men beat Earth Wind and Fire out of Tyson's ass?

Tyson dominated in his prime. When was Holyfields prime? he never had any.

Did you watch Lennox vs holyfield? i blamed myself for watching the 2 bouts. It would have been better to read live commentaries on the internet.

Douglas was plain fortunate just the way Hasheem rahman was against Lewis.

Ali was a journalist man The Lips of Louisville they call him Tyson had no time for those press romance.

It was always straight to business and Gbam!!! You are out cold.

Tyson is a bully? Yes Boxing is a brawl sport not for Gays like Holyfield and Lennox who were hugging one another throughout.

I swear they both had erections during the bout. Evander even came twice Allah I saw it!!!!