BoxRec

Any David Tua fans out there - that guy could punch!

I always liked Tua

The John Ruiz KO was pretty awesome!

As was the Moorer Moment, though Ruiz does top it.

Had he been given the Ibeabuchi decision, which he may well have deserved, I wonder if his trajectory would have been different.


Had that happened, Ike's rep would have been more in line with what he deserved.

Yeah I think I had the Ibeabuchi fight quite close, though it was awhile ago now. I should watch it again.

Exciting fighter.....anyone with Hasim, Ruiz, Moorer and a bona fide hard case like Maskaev on their tick list is worthy of respect.
Still think it is one of the best wins in the Lewis resume to be frank....Lewis boxed very smart that night.

Maybe the only let down was the Byrd fight...but then again, Chris was a guy who was exceptional at neutralising heavier, taller and more explosive heavyweights.

Bodyshot3 wrote:Exciting fighter.....anyone with Hasim, Ruiz, Moorer and a bona fide hard case like Maskaev on their tick list is worthy of respect.
Still think it is one of the best wins in the Lewis resume to be frank....Lewis boxed very smart that night.

Maybe the only let down was the Byrd fight...but then again, Chris was a guy who was exceptional at neutralising heavier, taller and more explosive heavyweights.

And wasn't that encounter post the Ibeabuchi fight for Byrd? Byrd learned much in that KO loss. And used it to his advantage along the way.

I always thought the Lewis fight was a disappointment, Tua just seemed a bit overawed once in the ring and failed to really go for broke at any point.
Might of been that Lewis just controlled it from distance and the slow feet of Tua just couldn't get set.

He could punch but he couldn't box.

The first memory I have of Tua is his match with Felix Salon. I remember watching it on the BBC I think...
Strange to think he was easily obliterated when he went on to show one of the finest chins in heavyweight history.

I

always thought the Lewis fight was a disappointment, Tua just seemed a bit overawed once in the ring and failed to really go for broke at any point. Might of been that Lewis just controlled it from distance and the slow feet of Tua just couldn't get set.

Agreed Ian.....it was marketed as a really explosive fight and I was looking forward to it; but Lennox just diffused things very well indeed and I think he knew that he could not get into any kind of grenade slinging contest with Tua. Thought Lennox was very smart/good that night and hence my comment....but it was a poor spectacle for us fans.

in the end too short for a hw puncher.

johnswan1 wrote:He could punch but he couldn't box.

Spot on.

His performance against Lewis was one of the most pathetic challenges for an HW title I've seen, especially when you consider that there were many who had him tipped to beat the ageing Lewis.

However, I have nothing against him: he had a Left hook from the ages & a chin to match.

If he had learnt how to box, he might have been a great fighter.

Syntax Error wrote:

johnswan1 wrote:He could punch but he couldn't box.

Spot on.

His performance against Lewis was one of the most pathetic challenges for an HW title I've seen, especially when you consider that there were many who had him tipped to beat the ageing Lewis.


If he had learnt how to box, he might have been a great fighter.

come on mate be fair' as a 5'10 or whatever and shortarmed guy at heavyweight you simply don't really have the option to 'box', what are you asking from him, up on his toes?>

@Counter-Puncher...yup, good observations.
Lewis twigged what Tua could do and wisely decided against spending a wild/dangerous night in the trenches; smart move I think, but dull fight.
Pretty sure that Lennox respected Tua and just opted to win the fight...rather than a make a statement.

Tua was doing OK early in the fight. Then he just seemed to stop trying during the middle of this fight. He was like that. At times he was very aggressive, and at other times he just wouldn't pull the trigger.

I never got the big thing around Tua ,he could punch but he was slower than joey Essex ,I rate him about the same as Gary mason

He had a better chin than the great Mike Tyson. A way much better chin. But, speedwise, he was slow.

elmersalsa wrote:He had a better chin than the great Mike Tyson. A way much better chin. But, speedwise, he was slow.

There was nothing wrong with Tyson's chin.

His chin was up there with the best of them.

His problem were stamina issues & becoming disheartened when the going got tough.

Great brawler. He just failed to box. Tua is the type of fighter you wouldnt want to bump into at a night club lol

Love Tua by the way. I am Samoan. I grew up watching him fight religiously.

'Frilla wrote:Great brawler. He just failed to box. Tua is the type of fighter you wouldnt want to bump into at a night club lol

Too true.

David Tua should have watched some Joe Frazier videos to learn how short pressure fighting HWs could be successful against larger men.

He was a great brawler at times. However other times he was passive. Most of the Lewis and Byrd fights he did very little.
Remember the Oquendo fight? He was getting schooled for most of the fight. Then he finally got aggressive and it quickly was all over.

Tua fans will like this

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=q7t4xeD9N2E

is it true that ruiz was a normal offensive boxer before the Tua fight and turned into a hugging machine after that? I have not seen ruiz before Tua (and that fight was too short) but I read that the tua KO totally changed his style because he was so scared.

of course he would not be the only one, lennox and Wladimir also turned into huggers following crushing KO losses, but at least they remained dangerous power Punchers while ruiz became a pure Spoiler.