Legendary heavyweight pairing Mike Tyson and Riddick Bowe both named the same fighter when revealing the best opponent that they ever faced.
Whilst their paths did not end up crossing during their respective careers, Tyson and Bowe are widely considered to be two of the greatest heavyweights of all time.
‘Iron Mike’ still holds the record of being the youngest world heavyweight champion ever, a feat he achieved back in 1986 when he stopped Trevor Berbick in the second round of their clash to capture the WBC heavyweight title.
As for Bowe, the hard-hitting American suffered just one defeat during his professional career, becoming the undisputed heavyweight champion in 1992 with a points victory over countryman Evander Holyfield.
In a feature with The Ring Magazine, ‘Iron Mike’ made no mistake in naming two-weight undisputed champion Holyfield as the best fighter he ever shared a ring with.
“Great champion: chin, heart, determination, work ethic, demeanor.”
‘Big Daddy’ Bowe also named Holyfield when revealing his greatest ever opponent, as he claims ‘The Real Deal’ was a ‘great champion.
“Unequivocally. Evander was smart, he was a thinker, he was in great shape, he had all the attributes to make him a great champion. That’s why he and I fought against each other so hard and so well.”
Holyfield became the first fighter in boxing history to win an undisputed world championship at cruiserweight and heavyweight, an outstanding record that remained unbroken until May 2024.
‘The Real Deal’ established himself as one of the greatest fighters of his generation, producing victories over Bowe, Tyson, Michael Moorer and George Foreman throughout the course of his storied career which came to an end in 2011.
