Mike Tyson has expressed skepticism about whether Oleksandr Usyk could have conquered the elite fighters from his own era.
Usyk is currently savoring his second stint as the undisputed heavyweight world champion, having previously claimed all four belts at cruiserweight. The undefeated Ukrainian has defeated Anthony Joshua twice, along with Tyson Fury and Daniel Dubois, cementing his status as the premier fighter of his generation.
However, Tyson, who also ruled as the undisputed heavyweight champion while demolishing all challengers, has raised doubts about whether Usyk could replicate that dominance against legends like Lennox Lewis, Evander Holyfield – and himself.
“I’m very impressed. Anybody can say whatever he wants. He’s the greatest heavyweight of his time right now,” Tyson told Hard Rock Bet.
“Nobody can beat him. He beat everybody. He beat everybody, so you have to give him his flowers.”
Yet when questioned about how Usyk would have performed against Tyson and his contemporaries, ‘Iron Mike’ added: “I don’t know, maybe he would have done good with some of us and bad with some of us, too. You know, it’s tough for me seeing him dominate that era.
“Fighting was different then, too, you know? It was all about being aggressive. The boxer didn’t get much, they didn’t get much entitlement, once we’re in the ring the aggressive fighter got more of the points. Even if he got hit more, because he was making the fight, they would give him the rounds. It’s all about excitement.
“If you’re an exciting fighter, you bring the people in the arena, you’re the man. You could be the greatest fighter in the world, but you could be boring, nobody wants to see you. Beat everybody, but nobody wants to see you fight, and you’re boring.”
Tyson stepped back into the ring last year against YouTuber Jake Paul, suffering a unanimous decision loss to the social media sensation after eight rounds. Tyson recently revealed a bout with Floyd Mayweather for next year, but their planned exhibition match has been upstaged after Mayweather was connected to a rematch with Manny Pacquiao.
But Tyson added: “I wish I could give you some input, but I have no idea what you’re talking about as far as those two guys fighting. It looks like [Mayweather is] going to get knocked out. This is what fighting’s all about. It’s about business.
“He’s [Floyd] going be a fighter for so long, he’s going to be a businessman forever and when you combine the two, you know, you’re very lucky.”
