With Oleksandr Usyk‘s recent victory over a much bigger man in Tyson Fury, fans and pundits are looking back to the career of a similar talent in Evander Holyfield.
‘The Real Deal’ was recently joined by Usyk in a particularly exclusive club – men who have been undisputed at cruiserweight and heavyweight.
Two of the most high-profile names on Holyfield’s record are George Foreman and Mike Tyson. He beat Foreman in 1991 to retain the three heavyweight belts he had won from Buster Douglas in the fight prior.
His rivalry with Tyson is one of the most controversial in the sport’s history, with the former cruiserweight champion scoring a stoppage victory in the first instalment and then winning by DQ when Tyson infamously bit his ear in the second.
Speaking to FightHype, Holyfield was asked who hit harder between the two heavyweights.
“George Foreman. A lot harder, a lot bigger too though.”
His analysis stacks up with the numbers. ‘Big George’ had an 84% knockout ratio over his storied career with ‘Iron’ Mike trailing at 78.6%.
With power in both fists, Foreman had a heavy, clubbing way about his punches. It’s what made him the oldest heavyweight world champion in history and gave him wins over three future Hall of Famers in Dwight Muhammad Qawi, Joe Frazier, and Ken Norton.
Tyson, on the other hand, was explosive. His compact stance and ability to leap in from angles at double quick speed gave him a unique element of surprise that contributed to 44 knockout wins, ten when it really mattered in title fights. Controversially, he will return this year against Jake Paul.
A fight between Foreman and Tyson would be, until someone took one too many, the old cliche of an immovable force against an unstoppable object. Unfortunately for fans, brief talks of it back in 1987 didn’t go any further.
