Former world heavyweight champion Riddick Bowe once summed up Deontay Wilder‘s chances of knocking out a prime Mike Tyson.
Known as ‘The Bronze Bomber’, Wilder is considered to be one of, if not the hardest hitting fighter in the history of boxing. The former WBC heavyweight champion has stopped all but one of the 44 opponents he has beaten during his career, producing a knockout percentage of 97.72%.
As for Tyson, the former undisputed heavyweight champion established himself as one of the greatest heavyweights of any era during his own professional career. The New York-native rose to stardom by becoming the youngest heavyweight champion of all time when he defeated countryman Trevor Berbick in 1986.
Another fighter that is viewed as one of the best heavyweights of all time is Bowe, having lost just one of his 45 professional fights, notably claiming two victories over Evander Holyfield.
Speaking to Seconds Out, Bowe shared his verdict on whether he believes Wilder would have been capable of knocking out Tyson had they crossed paths.
“Absolutely not, I beg to differ. Well because he throws one punch. Me and Mike have three or four punch combinations like [Evander] Holyfield. If you’re not punching like that you can forget about it.
“That long right hand, that one punch is not going to do it, matter of fact, that man’s going to gas because Tyson’s going to come and counter with his right hand. Mike throws his right hand, what’s going to happen? He couldn’t beat Mike with that.”
Tyson was a force to be reckoned with at the peak of his powers, which came in the late 1980s. He won his first 19 professional bouts via stoppage, which includes 12 first round victories.
After he defeated Berbick in 1986 to capture the WBC heavyweight title, ‘Iron Mike’ would go on to add the WBA and IBF titles to his collection with victories over James Smith and Tony Tucker, achieving undisputed status just days after his 21st birthday.
