Why do so many people live in the eighties when it comes to Mike Tyson?

Question

The fact that I've posed this question partially answers that question.
Never in the history of heavyweight boxing has their been a faster, more explosive fighter, with punching power second only to George Foreman's, in my opinion.

For a while it looked like he was a lock as an all time great, but who could have known back in '90, as he readied himself for Buster Douglas, that over the course of the next fifteen years, Tyson would only win another THIRTEEN fights.
And that against guys like Bruce Seldon, Francois Botha, Lou Savarese and Brian Nielsen. That's four of thirteen.

Tyson's much vaunted power really only worked against guys who were beaten before they threw a shot and his true character was revealed when he perpetrated what must be the most savage foul in the history of sport against Holyfield.
It was a cowardly way of quitting, to prevent the coming KO - as evidenced by his histrionics in the ring afterwards and his sob story about getting head butted.

Sorry guys - I used the wrong form of 'there'.

rossonero - Very interesting analysis.

Tyson fell victim to the same thing a lot of black people do. Listening to other blacks tell them that the white man is out to get them, in order to set themselves up to take everything their 'brother' or 'sister' has.

Tyson will not go down in history as one of the greats, but definitely the most controversial and fascinating.
Look at us - more than a decade after he held a title, still talking about him

black panther - You are one of the most articulate, hard -core Tyson apologists that I have ever encountered.

It was Tyson's CHOICE to stop listening to his trainers; cost him his career.

Holyfield bit someone as a teenage amateur. Kids do crazy things.
Tyson was a GROWN MAN when he ripped off a chunk of another individual's flesh in front of millions of people, perpetrating the most cowardly surrender I have ever seen - see the difference?

Holyfield kneed and butted Tyson in the first fight? What were you watching, dude? Not the same fight everyone else was, that's for sure.
That goes for the second fight, too. By the end of the second, Tyson had already given up. And a round later, he figured a way out of the fight.
Please, don't even attempt to make him the victim her. It's disingenuous, to say the least, and I think everyone is getting tired of hearing 'If Cus hadn't died, Tyson would've...'
My friend, a week before the fight with Tyson, Douglas' MOTHER died.

D'Amato also tried to instill in Tyson that he was a professional. A professional overcomes adversity - that's also what separates a hero from a coward - another lesson from D'Amato that Tyson never quite took in.
Which brings me to my last point - if Tyson was going to reign for fifteen years, and have all these great victories against Moorer, Bowe, Holyfield etc...
Why didn't he?

Answer 1

okay, why is it that so many of you forget that reputations are earned? before tyson was TYSON, he had to earn that rep of instilling fear. he is only, what, 5'11," and not normally a threat as a heavyweight. bonecrusher smith once said, "...none of us knew that tyson was supposed to be special." people underestimated him in the beginning and, in his early fights, you see guys giving him little respect and game competition, until he unleashed that explosive power! tyson had one of the greatest quotes ever in boxing when he said, "yeah, everybody's got a plan....until they get hit". once they got in the ring w/him, and saw his speed and power THEN they became afraid! tyson was not a power puncher in his prime. it was the accumulaton of shots, delivered w/the fastest hands since ali, that knocked guys out. every true boxing fan knows that speed=power. that, combined w/his great defensive skills, made him unbeatable. later in his career, he relied, too much on one punch knockouts, coasting on his "aura of invincibility," until he ran into douglas. also, his training habits deteriorated as he refused to listen to his trainers and shortcutted his way thru camp. must point out that holyfield also bit an opponent, which ranks him up(down) there w/tyson! i once saw a slow-mo replay of the 1st tyson-holyfield bout and you would be surprised to see how frequently holyfield fouled tyson. i mean he kneed and headbutted tyson several times and i honestly think tyson reciprocated in the second fight, as the referee did nothing to evander. several fighters have come out since complaining of holyfield's fouls which he always gets away with. must also point out that, in the rematch, tyson came out jabbing and tentative against holyfield..holyfield won the 1st two rounds being more the aggressor. after a holyfield headbutt or two that opened that gash over tyson's eye, he came out in the 3rd round, like the "prime tyson" and actually won the third round, unanimously, until he bit holyfield and had points taken away. immediately after, they stopped the fight. the point is, the momentum of that fight was changing and holyfield was not able to land a punch against tyson after the ear biting. tyson was ducking under his punches and the next round would've been verrry interesting had it continued. anyways, tyson will go down as one of the greats bec he deserved to be. after ali, there were a slew of so-called champions who didn't deserve any recognition. tyson ignited boxing again and was taking care of these preteners in short order...the way only a great fighter would. it is sad that cus died and tyson lost his focus, because he would've reigned for at least 15 years and given us some great performances against holyfield, bowe, lewis, cooney, moorer, etc, all of whom he would have defeated, being well-trained, producing some great rivalries. hope this satisfies your question!

Answer 2

Allen's right. With Cus and his original trainer (Kevin Rooney) Tyson was a force to be reckoned with. I don't think he would have lost to Buster Douglas with his original team. He wasn't the same fighter in any of his fights post-Rooney. He went from bobbing and weaving and leavering his power into his punches, to just throwing punches like an amateur. He did have enough strength to get away with that for awhile, but there was no way it would have lasted forever.

Rooney was a real trainer and knew how to advise Tyson between rounds. The "trainers" he had against Douglas didn't say a word between rounds, they just stood in front of him with their mouths open in disbelief.

D'Amato warned Tyson to stay away from Don King, but Mike let his hot but boxing unsavy wife Robin Givens nag him into going with him after D'Amato's death. What followed was predictable. He could have been one of the best, but it's hard to argue that he was the way his career eventually went.

Answer 3

With Cus D'amata Mike Tyson was a complete fighter. And actually was respectful to others. Or, so it seemed, to the public. But, when Cus passed away,Mike Tyson's true colors emerged. Arrogance, disrepectful (especially toward women), braggart, and coward. As, evidenced in the Holyfield fight. And in prison also, where he got his butt kicked. I agree with you, that most of Tyson's early fights were won before they even got in the ring. In the respect that, most fighters then were'nt trying to win, They were trying to survive and get a payday. I always did say, that a good puncher/boxer would beat Tyson.

Answer 4

I think part of the fascination with Tyson is that watching him now is like observing a traffic accident--it is almost that we were forced to look.

I think the early Tyson--in the fights that were leading up to the championship--was a much better fighter than what he became afterward. Once he fires people like Kevin Rooney and surrounds himself with sycophants, Mike Tyson becomes a lazy fighter. He stops bobbing and weaving and becomes a target. He doesn't stay in proper shape to fight tough fights with any endurance. And nobody can teach him anything because he is so filled with hubris.

Answer 5

I was only 10 when he started boxing, but I got to see one of his early fights not to long ago, and watching him in action, I could only ask myself what the hell happened to him? That dude could hit so hard it was sickening. I think most people live in the 80's with him because he was th emost excitng thing to happen to boxing since the mid-seventies. it is a shame what happened to him, and yes the biting of the ear was something I didn't understand, I don't know how he thought he would get away with it, but I guess either way he knew he was going to lose. So now we can only think about his glory days, and how exciting it was to watch his 1 round fights...

Answer 6

Who is the heavyweight champ now, a matter of fact who has held the title for more than 5 fights since Tyson. I agree with everything you said, but there are no great fighters now, much less American born great fighters...

Answer 7

He may have been a mean, scary and nasty fighter, he surely was no Holyfield or Foreman. Hell, he wasn't even a Liston.

Answer 8

Because Mike Tyson ain't sh1t now!

Answer 9

I totally don't get it either.

Answer 10

i just never liked his attitude......his temper..........you did not even mention my hero Ali