Highlights
- James ‘Buster’ Douglas has had his say on how today’s fighters would fare against a prime Mike Tyson.
- Douglas caused one of the biggest upsets in the sport when he climbed off the canvas to stop 'Iron Mike' back in 1990.
- Tyson is widely regarded as one of the best heavyweights in the history of the sport.
Boxing legend James ‘Buster’ Douglas has had his say on how today’s fighters would fare against a prime Mike Tyson. The 64-year-old is a former heavyweight world champion who retired from the sport in 1999 with a professional record of 38-6-1-1.
Regarded as one of the best fighters of his era, Douglas knows what it takes to beat Tyson. The American caused one of the biggest upsets in the sport when he climbed off the canvas to stop 'Iron Mike' in the 10th round back in 1990.
Tyson, 57, famously hasn't fought a professional bout since 2005, is scheduled to fight Jake Paul on the 15th of November, when the highly-anticipated rematch between Katie Taylor and Amanda Serrano will also take place.
The pair were due to meet on the 20th of July at AT&T Stadium in Arlington, Texas before medical issues on the part of Tyson caused the bout to be postponed.
During the peak of his powers, 'Iron Mike' was unstoppable and is now recognised as one of the best heavyweights in the history of boxing, but Douglas has named the current heavyweight who could beat Tyson.
The fighter may not come as a surprise to fans
Tyson's name is often compared to heavyweights from other generations. Speaking to Gambling Zone, Douglas has revealed the current stars of today who'd have the best chance of beating 'Iron Mike' in his prime.
“I would say Usyk would have had the best chance to beat Mike. Then AJ [Anthony Joshua], but Mike was a tough individual.”
Usyk became the first undisputed heavyweight champion of the world since Lennox Lewis in 1999 when he defeated 'The Gypsy King' back in May.
The Ukrainian secured a tight split decision win on the judges' scorecards after an epic battle at Kingdom Arena. The official score totals read 115-112 Usyk, 114-113 Fury & 114-113 Usyk.
The decisive moment came in the ninth round. Usyk landed a number of stinging shots - which appeared to nearly knock Fury out. The Brit was left dazed on the canvas and was saved by the bell, with many believing that the contest should've been stopped.
His Excellency, Turki Alalshikh, has confirmed that the rematch between Usyk and Fury is being planned for the 21st of December in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia.
Spencer Oliver Compares Usyk to Some of the Greats
It'll take a lot to dethrone the Ukrainian
After striking gold at the Olympic Games in 2012, the Ukrainian made his professional debut a year later and was already a world champion within three years.
In 2018, the Ukrainian made history when he became the undisputed cruiserweight champion after he gave Murat Gassiev a boxing lesson in a near-shutout decision win in the World Boxing Super Series final at Olimpiysky Sports Complex in Moscow.
He then retained his titles against Tony Bellew before moving up to heavyweight in 2019. Since then, he's been on an absolute tear. The two wins over Anthony Joshua established himself as one of the best on the planet.
Now, after defeating Fury, it's fair to say that Usyk is the best on the planet and arguably pound-for-pound number one in the world. When comparing the Ukrainian to some of the biggest names in the sport in the heavyweight division, Spencer Oliver told GiveMeSport on behalf of talkSPORT BET:
"You look at other undisputed champions, you're talking about the last ones like Riddick Bowe, Evander Holyfield, Buster Douglas, Mike Tyson. They're the sort of names that you're talking about and when you talk about those names, they're names who've gone through generations, people accept that they are great fighters. Well, guess what! Oleksandr Usyk wins the undisputed cruiserweight titles, moves up, wins the undisputed heavyweight title, he has to go down as an all-time great."
