ANTHONY JOSHUA has delivered his “humble” opinion on why Mike Tyson would beat Muhammad Ali if the legends fought each other in their prime.
With boxing suspended during the coronavirus pandemic, fans have indulged in discussing the what-if match-ups between greats of the sport.
Joshua gave his verdict and explained how Ali would need to bulk up to fight a prime TysonCredit: EPA
When asked during a JD Sports Instagram Live about the Ali vs Tyson hypothetical, Joshua broke the matter down to give a considered verdict.
The Brit, 30, backed Tyson for his extensive knowledge of how to best opponents, thanks to his use of modern “science”.
Joshua said: “It’s quite interesting because in the era of Ali’s heavyweight reign, the heavyweights were ranked as cruiserweights.
“So in the Mike Tyson, Larry Holmes, George Foreman, Lennox Lewis era; they started getting bigger.
“Hence why, in the amateurs, they then created a super heavyweight division.
“So the current heavyweight division in the amateurs is what we class as the cruiserweight division [in the pros], so Ali went from lightweight and worked his way up.
“He wouldn’t have been a fully fledged heavyweight. Let’s say we bulked Ali up and added size and strength to him, I truly believe Mike Tyson would have won.
“Reason being, when you watch the fight between Joe Frazier and Ali you see a certain Tyson-esque style in Frazier.
“Tyson used to study Frazier: moving, moving, hooks, hooks.
“He managed to put Ali down, it was a very tough fight for him.
“I just believe Tyson was better schooled because times have evolved, he was more developed with more science, more information. So Tyson would have won – in my humble opinion.”
Fans have held a keen interest in establishing an all-time heavyweight king of late, most notably in the eWBSS series played out on simulations from the Fight Night Champion game.
After Tyson beat George Foreman and Ali knocked out Sonny Liston in the semi-finals, they met in the eSports showpiece.
Both icons hit the canvas in the early rounds but it was Tyson who came out on top with a unanimous points decision after 12 gruelling rounds.
Ali finished with a career record of 56 wins from 61 fights – despite being banned for several yearsCredit: Getty – Contributor
Tyson holds the record as the youngest boxer to win a heavyweight titleCredit: Getty Images – Getty
Tyson on his way to virtual points win over AliCredit: Facebook – World Boxing Super Series
Mike Tyson’s former boxing trainer Nelson Cuevas explains how he first met the boxing legend
Source: Boxing - thesun.co.uk
