Who is the greatest heavyweight boxer of all time? This question has long been debated and it is perhaps as polarising as discussions about whether Donald Trump is fit to occupy the Oval office in the US.
All lists are pretty much based on opinion and it is for this very reason that they are always guaranteed to prompt and furious debate and passionate exchanges.
The TimesLIVE list should be no different‚ given that our all-time boxing food chain has Mike ‘‘Kid Dynamite” Tyson comfortably perched at the summit.
Tyson was a supremely gifted individual in his prime but he unfortunately hit the self-destruct button as hard as he punched to eventually flush his career down the toilet.
No boxer has ever split opinion like he did and it is no surprise that boxing’s modern-day audiences regard Tyson as the best of all time while those familiar with fighters of an era gone by thumb their noses at his skills.
The fact is Tyson brought unheralded levels of force into the boxing ring‚ embracing the fear factor displayed by other notorious wrecking balls like Charles ‘‘Sonny” Liston and Rocky ‘‘The Brockton Blockbuster” Marciano.
Of course‚ Tyson faded as both Father Time and his demons outside the ring collided‚ losing against Evander ‘‘Real Deal” Holyfield‚ Lennox ‘‘Lion” Lewis and even going down to Kevin ‘‘The Clones Colossus” McBride‚ a man who moved slower than the earth’s tectonic plates.
But in the years prior to the James ‘‘Buster” Douglas debacle that epitomised his spectacular fall from the top of the food chain‚ there were glimpses of an astute boxing talent‚ a man blessed with such natural fighting prowess that he seemed capable of eclipsing all those that had gone before him.
He was well known for his ferocious and intimidating style as well as his controversial behaviour inside and outside the ring.
Tyson holds the third-longest unified championship reign in heavyweight history with eight consecutive defences.
The Ring Magazine’s list ranked him at No. 16 on its 100 greatest punchers of all time and he’s is at No. 1 on the ESPN.Com list of ‘‘The Hardest Hitters in the Heavyweight History”.
Sky Sports rated him as “The Scariest Boxer Ever” and described him as ‘‘perhaps the most ferocious fighter to step into a professional ring”.
He is an inductee into the International Boxing Hall of Fame and the World Boxing Hall of Fame.
He held the WBC heavyweight title form 1986 to 1990‚ WBA and IBF from 1987 to 1990 and WBC and WBA titles in 1996.
Our full list of greatest alltime heavyweight champions:
1) Mike Tyson: 50 wins 44 KOs‚ 6 losses
2) Muhammad ‘‘The Greatest” Ali: 56 wins‚ 37 knockouts and five losses
3) Joe ‘‘Brown Bomber” Louis: 66 wins‚ 52 knockouts and three losses
4) Rocky ‘‘The Brockton Blockbuster” Marciano: 49 wins with 43 knockouts
5) William Harrison ‘‘Jack” Dempsey: 54 wins‚ 44 knockouts‚ six losses and nine draws
6) Joe ‘‘Smokin’ Joe” Frazier: 32 wins‚ 27 knockouts‚ four losses and a draw
7) James ‘‘Gene” Tunney: 65 wins‚ 45 knockouts‚ a loss and a draw
8) George ‘‘Big George” Foreman: 78 wins‚ 68 knockouts and five losses
9) Larry ‘‘The Easton Assassin” Holmes: 69 wins‚ 4 knockouts and six losses
10) Lennox ‘‘The Lion” Lewis: 41‚ 32 knockouts‚ two losses and a draw
Let the debate rage.
by Bongani Magasela – TimesLIVE