A former rival of Mike Tyson and Lennox Lewis claims there is another heavyweight who was more skilful than the legendary duo.
Both men are commended for being two of the best heavyweights to have ever graced the sport, enjoying considerable success during their respective careers.
‘Iron Mike’ wrote his name into the boxing history books back in 1986 when he became the youngest world heavyweight champion of all time, an exceptional feat that he achieved after he stopped countryman Trevor Berbick in the second round of their clash for the WBC heavyweight title.
As for Lewis, the British-Canadian great rose to stardom during the 1990s where he defeated the likes of Frank Bruno, Oliver McCall and Tommy Morrison. Perhaps the most famous victory of his career came in 1999 when he defeated Evander Holyfield to capture the undisputed heavyweight championship.
Lewis and Tyson faced one another in 2002 when they were in the twilight of their careers, with Lewis claiming an eighth round knockout victory.
One man that shared the ring with both Lewis and Tyson was former IBF world heavyweight champion Tony Tucker, who is known for having the shortest world heavyweight title reign of all time at just 64 days.
In a round of ‘Best I Faced’ with The Ring Magazine, Tucker gave a surprising answer when asked to name his most skilful opponent, overlooking both Tyson and Lewis in a shock statement.
“Buster Douglas. Tyson, Douglas and Lennox had good skills. Douglas was very sound technically; you saw how he fought Tyson. We fought before him and Tyson and he saw how I did and followed [the game plan].”
Douglas proved to be a durable opponent for many top heavyweights during the late 1980s into the 1990s, although he is best known for his 1990 victory over Tyson where he became the undisputed heavyweight champion when he stopped his countryman in the 10th round of their clash in Japan, one of the biggest upsets in the sport’s history.
