Tyson Fury has said it’s “ridiculous” to compare Mike Tyson to Deontay Wilder or Anthony Joshua, claiming that a prime Iron Mike would finish either man with his first serious punch.
Talking in the latest Ring magazine, Fury makes his feelings absolutely clear, stating: “He would have walked straight to Wilder, hit him once and absolutely poleaxed him, and Joshua even quicker.
“Why? Because those fellas have no defence, and he’d just walk straight to guys like that. Mike Tyson, with his angles, would have sorted them.”
Tell us how you really feel, big man. The 31-year-old heavyweight was actually discussing how a dream fight between Mike Tyson and himself might play out, but naturally couldn’t resist a shot at his rivals.
“What made Mike Tyson special is that he dedicated his life to the sport,” says Fury. “In the early days, nothing else mattered except smashing people’s faces in.
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“He had that aura about him where he was going in the ring, and people were falling over before they’d been hit.”
Fury explains that this brooding menace would have had no impact on him, a theory backed up by the fact that he’s twice got in the ring with Wilder, a feared puncher in his own right.
However Fury believes that both AJ and the Bronze Bomber would have been mentally dismantled by a young Iron Mike.
“All of the intimidation factors that would have worked with Joshua and Wilder wouldn’t work with me,” he says. “On the night, no matter who they are, when they’re in that ring, they’re just men with gloves on – just like me.”
In 2018, Wilder claimed that he would have “kicked the hell” out a 1986-era Mike Tyson, but that view has been disputed by Lennox Lewis among others.
But Tyson was civil in his own response to Wilder’s claim, saying earlier this year: “I love the fact that he thinks that, because that’s the way I would think as well.”
The former undisputed heavyweight champion is, however, more of a Tyson Fury man. Their respect is obvious throughout The Ring’s dual interview with the pair – with Fury expanding on why they share a bond.
“We’re similar in that we’ve endured tough times; we’ve both been down and picked ourselves up again,” says the Brit. “We both know what it’s like to have everything, and we both know what it’s like to have nothing.”
Fury seems in a good place mentally in 2020 and, while we’ll obviously never see Mike Tyson vs Joshua or Wilder in an actual ring, let’s hope there’s some chance of Fury vs Willder III or – even better – Fury vs Joshua in the next 18 months.
