By Gabriel Princewill
Unbeaten World Heavyweight Champion, Anthony Joshua, has admitted he would have been scared of Mike Tyson. The IBF and WBA champion. Joshua said:
”Mike Tyson would have beaten me. There is no way I would have taken on that guy. I would have taken that pay cheque. You know what I done when I took that dive against Klitschko in that sixth round when I took that dive?I’m joking. I would have taken a dive against Tyson, he is a beast”, he said. I give all respect to Tyson. Even though he is going on like 50 now, I still remember the young 21 year old”.
Joshua’s comments will hardly impress boxing fans, who expect a world champion to express no fear against current or past world champions. Most hard core fans will share Joshua’s honest assessment, but Tyson eventually proved not to be invincible. Bruno rocked Tyson in the first round when the pair first met in 1989, but was eventually stopped in the 5th round after promising to become the first heavyweight to beat the then unbeaten Tyson.
Bruno was beaten in an even shorter time in their rematch four years later when Tyson stopped the muscle bound Bruno in three rounds.
Buster Douglas became the first man to beat Mike Tyson in 1990 when he dismantled him in 10 rounds before a world wde audience in Tokyo. Privte problems were presented by fans for the reason for his defeat, but the truth is that Douglas, who was ranked no 3 by the WBA, was underestimated. The American lost his first defence to Evander Holyfield, who again beat stopped Tyson in 11 rounds when they met, and again in 3 rounds for their grudge rematch.
Lennox Lewis called in vain for a fight against Tyson before Holyfield’s conquest, and eventually met and defeated him in a one sided 8 round contest in 2001. Lewis schooled and humiliated Tyson in that fight. Joshua’s comments were likely made in reverence to Tyson, but the Londoner would not take a dive if he were to meet a fighter with attribures equivalent to that of the formidable former world champ. Joshua would ofcourse be an underdog, but at this stage of his career, would have given it a good go.
MOMENTUM
Under the circumstances of Olympic glory on which the two belt champion has built momentum, he would have adapted to the brute force approach that Tyson was noted for. Speculating on who would have won is mere conjecture, however soothing it is to hypothesize on who would have won. Few boxing experts gave Tyson Fury a chance against Wladimir Klitschko in 2015, yet Fury prevailed. Even fewer boxing experts expected Tony Bellew to emerge victorious against David Haye, but the unthinkable happened.
Joshua did well to emphatically dispose of Wladimir Klitschko in 11 rounds when the pair met last April. He was dropped earlier in the sixth round and fought valiantly in a struggle to regain control of the fight, after falling behind on points. The well chiselled 6ft 6inch specimen is vying for a lucrative rematch against Klitschko this November, but his handlers await a confirmation from the former dominant champion of more than a decade.
DIVISION
Klitschko really has nothing more to prove by risking another defeat, but Joshua’s stock will rise further, should he defeat Klitschko twice in a row. The jury is still out on Joshua, as there are many who now have doubts that he is the man to dominate the division. A victorious win against Tyson Fury (if he gets his license back) and Deontey Wilder in 2018, will establish Joshua as the best in the division. In the meantime, American deontey Wilder is regarded as holding the no 1 spot, bt the world waits fir a unified heavyweight champion to emerge next year as the ‘true’ ruler of the division