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Tyson vs. Liston? Here's the matchup
In light of the upcoming mega-fight between Floyd “Money” Mayweather and Juan Manuel Marquez Saturday, we’re going to try something different besides just picking a winner of that fight. A lot of people wonder what would happen if all-time great boxers could meet in their prime and arguments are endless on why each person’s favorite fighter would win.
So with the help of fellow boxing writer Sergio Ramirez and blog reader/boxing fan Tim Coster and his computer, we are going to take a look at two of the best heavyweights of all time and see how they would fare against each other.
First up in the time machine: Catskill’s own “Iron” Mike Tyson (50-6, 44 KO) vs. Sonny Liston (50-4, 39 KO) at Yankee Stadium.
Predictions:
Me: You would be hard pressed to find two more intimidating figures than Sonny Liston and Mike Tyson.
Both guys did time in the pen, both had uncontrollable tempers and both were ridiculously hard punchers. If anyone besides Rocky Marciano was going to give Tyson a run for his money in his prime, I’d pick Liston to do it. One of Tyson’s biggest advantages was pure intimidation of his opponent, but unlike the guys Mike fought in the mid-80s, Liston wasn’t afraid to face off with anyone (he got tossed in jail for armed robbery and later on for beating up a cop).
On the other hand, Tyson was one of the fastest heavyweights ever. He had grenades for fists and could floor opponents with either arm. He had great foot and head movement and I don’t think Liston could have kept up with him. Sonny liked to wear guys down and had a crushing jab but I feel Mike would have dodged it and floored him out of nowhere.
More importantly, Mike made appearances in Hangover, Crocodile Dundee in Los Angeles, Rocky Balboa and Who’s the Boss. That, along with participating in various professional wrestling events, gives him the edge in my opinion. What did Sonny do outside of the ring besides piss off the mob?
Tyson by KO in the 7th.
Ramirez: I am no expert, so the only footage I can honestly say I’ve seen from Sonny Liston are the two fights against Muhammad Ali. Both losses, and terrible ones at that. Liston didn’t get off the stool after the 7th round in the first fight with Ali, then named Cassius Clay. The second fight ended with a controversial first round KO. That’s a pretty dismal legacy to the average boxing fan.
Meanwhile, ESPN classic is the Mike Tyson network, showcasing dozens and dozens of destructive KOs from “Kid Dynamite.” Tyson wasn’t just knocking people out, he was putting their careers in jeopardy. He was so powerful, that it’s easy to forget he was very quick for his weight class and wasn’t a novice defensively at all. At his best, Tyson never stopped moving his head, giving his opponents a difficult target.
Tyson wins. Liston would get knocked down in the 8th round and probably stay down or retire on the stool if history serves correct. He most likely took a dive in the second fight with Ali, and I wouldn’t trust him to fight honorably against Tyson. Not to say Tyson is an honorable fighter (the ear bite, the attempted arm break and probably some stuff I don’t even know about), but a prime Tyson would be up to the task of taking on Liston minus any dirty tricks. That’s IF Tyson works hard in training camp, gets locked in the gym, and has an extremely patient trainer. You could see renowned trainer Freddie Roach age about 10 years during the time he was managing Tyson back in 2003 for his fight against the immortal “Black Rhino” Clifford Etienne.
Liston has a chance if Tyson owes the Mafia more money than he does. Too bad Tyson’s money woes are with the federal government. Sorry Sonny.
Tyson TKO 8th Round.
Fight breakdown courtesy of Tim:
Round 1: Trainers Kevin Rooney and Dick Sadler give last minute instructions to Tyson before the action begins. Liston misses an early combo and Tyson thuds two shots off Sonny’s ribs and circles away. Both fighters show each other a lot of respect early on, flicking out jabs to test their opponent. Tyson connects with a vicious right cross that backs Sonny up and Liston grabs on to Mike as the round closes.
2-4: Mike opens up with some nice combos to the body and the head that clearly stun Liston in the second. Sonny fires back in the third round with a great combo, but most of the shots are blocked by Mike. At the end of the third Liston nails Tyson with a shot below the belt, after being on the receiving end of some nasty body shots. The fourth round is Tyson’s best by far, as he continues to rock Liston’s body. Sonny clips and stuns Mike midway through the round but Tyson comes back with a straight right that rocks Liston at the bell.
5-7: Liston comes out and immediately and smothers Mike’s offense by clinching up. Tyson continues to work the body but Liston fires a stiff uppercut that hurts Mike. He follows that up with a combo that connects with Tyson’s jaw and Mike looks hurt going into the sixth. Mike starts to get wild in the sixth and pins Liston’s arm to his side, firing off a few hooks before the ref breaks them up. The two stand toe-to-toe in the middle of the ring and Liston throws a hard body shot as the round ends. In the seventh Tyson lands some soft jabs and rocks Liston with a three-punch combo that turn Sonny’s legs to Jell-O as the bell saves him.
8-9: Tyson comes out a little too eager and charges Liston, who in turn unloads a left hook flush on Tyson’s jaw, and down he goes. Mike gets up to a standing eight count and tries to clinch. Sonny looks for the kill and lands an uppercut, putting Mike back on the seat of his trunks. Tyson gets up again and the bell sounds the end of the round. In the ninth, Mike comes out cautiously as does Liston. He knows Mike’s power and the fighters trade jabs before Sonny tries for a combo of three jabs that miss their mark. Liston lands a right hook and the round ends with Mike clutching his ribs.
10: It looked like Rooney was going to stop this thing in the corner but Tyson convinced him to let it go on. Liston looks winded as the fighters clinch up but he comes to life and lands a series of jabs and an uppercut. Mike is stumbling around like a drunk sailor and Sonny charges in for the kill with a jab and two hooks to the body, followed by a right hand off the top of Tyson’s head that sends him into the ropes. Liston lands a left hook and a right to the head again and the ref leaps between the two fighters, calling a stop to the action at 2:25 of the 10th round.
Final fight stats (The match was run 100 times): The final fight tally was 61-36-3 in favor of Liston with the average stoppage coming in the 10th round.
Fight wrap-up: Well Mike won a little more than one-third of the time. Regardless of the outcome, this would have easily been fight-of-the-year and a great trilogy of fights. Anyone that wants to see the complete, extended run-down of the fight, leave a comment below.
Tim also ran the upcoming Mayweather vs. Marquez fight through his computer 100 times and Mayweather comes out victorious by stoppage in the 10th round.
— Like it? Hate it? Leave a comment and give your opinion. Also if you would like to see this run more often, leave a comment and tell us who else you would like to see enter Tim’s machine to do battle.
So with the help of fellow boxing writer Sergio Ramirez and blog reader/boxing fan Tim Coster and his computer, we are going to take a look at two of the best heavyweights of all time and see how they would fare against each other.
First up in the time machine: Catskill’s own “Iron” Mike Tyson (50-6, 44 KO) vs. Sonny Liston (50-4, 39 KO) at Yankee Stadium.
Predictions:
Me: You would be hard pressed to find two more intimidating figures than Sonny Liston and Mike Tyson.
Both guys did time in the pen, both had uncontrollable tempers and both were ridiculously hard punchers. If anyone besides Rocky Marciano was going to give Tyson a run for his money in his prime, I’d pick Liston to do it. One of Tyson’s biggest advantages was pure intimidation of his opponent, but unlike the guys Mike fought in the mid-80s, Liston wasn’t afraid to face off with anyone (he got tossed in jail for armed robbery and later on for beating up a cop).
On the other hand, Tyson was one of the fastest heavyweights ever. He had grenades for fists and could floor opponents with either arm. He had great foot and head movement and I don’t think Liston could have kept up with him. Sonny liked to wear guys down and had a crushing jab but I feel Mike would have dodged it and floored him out of nowhere.
More importantly, Mike made appearances in Hangover, Crocodile Dundee in Los Angeles, Rocky Balboa and Who’s the Boss. That, along with participating in various professional wrestling events, gives him the edge in my opinion. What did Sonny do outside of the ring besides piss off the mob?
Tyson by KO in the 7th.
Ramirez: I am no expert, so the only footage I can honestly say I’ve seen from Sonny Liston are the two fights against Muhammad Ali. Both losses, and terrible ones at that. Liston didn’t get off the stool after the 7th round in the first fight with Ali, then named Cassius Clay. The second fight ended with a controversial first round KO. That’s a pretty dismal legacy to the average boxing fan.
Meanwhile, ESPN classic is the Mike Tyson network, showcasing dozens and dozens of destructive KOs from “Kid Dynamite.” Tyson wasn’t just knocking people out, he was putting their careers in jeopardy. He was so powerful, that it’s easy to forget he was very quick for his weight class and wasn’t a novice defensively at all. At his best, Tyson never stopped moving his head, giving his opponents a difficult target.
Tyson wins. Liston would get knocked down in the 8th round and probably stay down or retire on the stool if history serves correct. He most likely took a dive in the second fight with Ali, and I wouldn’t trust him to fight honorably against Tyson. Not to say Tyson is an honorable fighter (the ear bite, the attempted arm break and probably some stuff I don’t even know about), but a prime Tyson would be up to the task of taking on Liston minus any dirty tricks. That’s IF Tyson works hard in training camp, gets locked in the gym, and has an extremely patient trainer. You could see renowned trainer Freddie Roach age about 10 years during the time he was managing Tyson back in 2003 for his fight against the immortal “Black Rhino” Clifford Etienne.
Liston has a chance if Tyson owes the Mafia more money than he does. Too bad Tyson’s money woes are with the federal government. Sorry Sonny.
Tyson TKO 8th Round.
Fight breakdown courtesy of Tim:
Round 1: Trainers Kevin Rooney and Dick Sadler give last minute instructions to Tyson before the action begins. Liston misses an early combo and Tyson thuds two shots off Sonny’s ribs and circles away. Both fighters show each other a lot of respect early on, flicking out jabs to test their opponent. Tyson connects with a vicious right cross that backs Sonny up and Liston grabs on to Mike as the round closes.
2-4: Mike opens up with some nice combos to the body and the head that clearly stun Liston in the second. Sonny fires back in the third round with a great combo, but most of the shots are blocked by Mike. At the end of the third Liston nails Tyson with a shot below the belt, after being on the receiving end of some nasty body shots. The fourth round is Tyson’s best by far, as he continues to rock Liston’s body. Sonny clips and stuns Mike midway through the round but Tyson comes back with a straight right that rocks Liston at the bell.
5-7: Liston comes out and immediately and smothers Mike’s offense by clinching up. Tyson continues to work the body but Liston fires a stiff uppercut that hurts Mike. He follows that up with a combo that connects with Tyson’s jaw and Mike looks hurt going into the sixth. Mike starts to get wild in the sixth and pins Liston’s arm to his side, firing off a few hooks before the ref breaks them up. The two stand toe-to-toe in the middle of the ring and Liston throws a hard body shot as the round ends. In the seventh Tyson lands some soft jabs and rocks Liston with a three-punch combo that turn Sonny’s legs to Jell-O as the bell saves him.
8-9: Tyson comes out a little too eager and charges Liston, who in turn unloads a left hook flush on Tyson’s jaw, and down he goes. Mike gets up to a standing eight count and tries to clinch. Sonny looks for the kill and lands an uppercut, putting Mike back on the seat of his trunks. Tyson gets up again and the bell sounds the end of the round. In the ninth, Mike comes out cautiously as does Liston. He knows Mike’s power and the fighters trade jabs before Sonny tries for a combo of three jabs that miss their mark. Liston lands a right hook and the round ends with Mike clutching his ribs.
10: It looked like Rooney was going to stop this thing in the corner but Tyson convinced him to let it go on. Liston looks winded as the fighters clinch up but he comes to life and lands a series of jabs and an uppercut. Mike is stumbling around like a drunk sailor and Sonny charges in for the kill with a jab and two hooks to the body, followed by a right hand off the top of Tyson’s head that sends him into the ropes. Liston lands a left hook and a right to the head again and the ref leaps between the two fighters, calling a stop to the action at 2:25 of the 10th round.
Final fight stats (The match was run 100 times): The final fight tally was 61-36-3 in favor of Liston with the average stoppage coming in the 10th round.
Fight wrap-up: Well Mike won a little more than one-third of the time. Regardless of the outcome, this would have easily been fight-of-the-year and a great trilogy of fights. Anyone that wants to see the complete, extended run-down of the fight, leave a comment below.
Tim also ran the upcoming Mayweather vs. Marquez fight through his computer 100 times and Mayweather comes out victorious by stoppage in the 10th round.
— Like it? Hate it? Leave a comment and give your opinion. Also if you would like to see this run more often, leave a comment and tell us who else you would like to see enter Tim’s machine to do battle.
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