BoxRec

15 rounds please...

I pick Jimmy Young by decision...the Young that beat the great Muhammad Ali and got robbed by Don King and the judges, who also beat the great George Foreman in San Juan, Puerto Rico beats the great Mike Tyson. That is, if Young comes in great shape. He remind me of the great Wilfred Benitez. A heavyweight Benitez.

Tyson by knockout before round 5.

Foreman was usually a fast starter but he gave Young LOTS of breathing room to establish himself in the early rounds. After Young survived a near KO in the 7th when George finally started stepping it up, Foreman was too fatigued to re-establish control.
Tyson is a quick starter, just as fast, and will be in his face disrupting his measured pace from the beginning. Young also doesn't have the pop to have Mike think twice.

Tyson pre-Douglas storms Young who can't back him up. Young had a few good outings but I don't think he could carry the fight into the later rounds against prime Mike. If he was able to do that, he might win a decision.
If I had to put money on it: Tyson KO3

dempseyfire wrote:Tyson by knockout before round 5.

Foreman was usually a fast starter but he gave Young LOTS of breathing room to establish himself in the early rounds. After Young survived a near KO in the 7th when George finally started stepping it up, Foreman was too fatigued to re-establish control.
Tyson is a quick starter, just as fast, and will be in his face disrupting his measured pace from the beginning. Young also doesn't have the pop to have Mike think twice.

Agreed. Young fought better opposition for the most part, but wasn't as hot as Tyson. Ali & Foreman were good wins for Young (in spite of those wretched cards against Ali) but those were guys past their primes. Good wins, certainly, but not against fighters at their peaks. Tyson KO's him, IMO.

Putting Young on a par with the eternally-undersold Benitez, Elmer? That's a slap in the chops for the Puerto Rican Bible

When Kevin Rooney was his trainer and before Jim Jacobs died, Mike Tyson came into the ring well-trained and focused. Tyson of that era would wipe the floor with Jimmy Young.

- Chuck Johnston

Chuck1052 wrote:When Kevin Rooney was his trainer and before Jim Jacobs died, Mike Tyson came into the ring well-trained and focused. Tyson of that era would wipe the floor with Jimmy Young.

- Chuck Johnston

Well said.

Chuck1052 wrote:When Kevin Rooney was his trainer and before Jim Jacobs died, Mike Tyson came into the ring well-trained and focused. Tyson of that era would wipe the floor with Jimmy Young.

- Chuck Johnston

I've got to agree with you, all respect due to Young but styles make fights.

Jimmy Young was certainly a good boxer. But i cannot believe people would suggest a prime Tyson won't beat a Prime Young

Can you imagine what would have happened to Young the first time he stuck his head and upper torso between the ropes and outside the ring (as he did against Ali) vs. a 1986 vintage Tyson?

I think Tyson manages to beat Young, Young does his best to
box, move and hold but is picked apart and beaten up by Tyson.

Im assuming this is both men in their primes..

Nobody giving Jimmy a chance? A close to peak Tyson was taken 10 rounds by 'Quick' Tillis and Jimmy was better than Tillis

Robinson wrote:I think Tyson manages to beat Young, Young does his best to
box, move and hold but is picked apart and beaten up by Tyson.

Im assuming this is both men in their primes..

A prime Young is "picked apart" by Tyson!!?? Hmmmm

Ezzard wrote:Nobody giving Jimmy a chance? A close to peak Tyson was taken 10 rounds by 'Quick' Tillis and Jimmy was better than Tillis

That's a good point, but - living up to his nickname - Tillis was "quicker" than Young, and his speed is what gave Tyson trouble. Young was not speedy, just crafty and cagey. He did well against big and slower men like Foreman and Lyle. I think Tyson's agressiveness and quick hands would have presented a lot of problems for Jimmy.

Also, we are talking prime-to-prime match-ups. The Tillis that faced an up-and-coming Tyson would have not done nearly so well against the 1985 version of Iron Mike.

Tillis did last rounds, but he hardly ever looked like he was going to win..

Fight was only shown as highlights in the UK and the scoring system rounds did help Tillis but he won more rouns off Tyson than anyone until Douglas. And he did it with movement rather than just backing off.

I know where you guys are coming from but IMO Tyson who fought Tillis was closer to the 85 Tyson than that version of Tillis was from a top of his game Jimmy Young.

Editorial correction: when referring to a prime Mike Tyson, I meant "1988" - not 85 or 86 as I wrote earlier. Sorry.

I would pick Tyson to win but no way is he going to knock Jimmy out. Jimmy got hit square by men who punch harder or as hard as Tyson and other than an early fight with Shavers which he later redeemed, he was never off his feet.

And if Bonecrusher and Tucker and Ruddock saw 12 with a bit of holding and movement (Tucker at least), Jimmy Young certainly would last too.

young did have the ability to give tyson problems, but mike would not respect him or even care. tyson ko in 1. m. spinks would have beaten jimmy young any day and twice on sunday

Wow. Everyone has a right to express their opinions, but damn, in my own, the vast majority of you are vastly exagerating Tyson's abilities & drastically under-estimating a prime Young's.

Style's make fights & boy, did Young ever have the style to SERIOUSLY f uck with Tyson.
Tyson always had trouble with fighters he couldn't hit solidly & who could hold him on the inside, which negated his handspeed & frustrated the hell out of him. Things that Young was a master of.

"Quick" Tillis, "Nino" Ribalta, "Bonecrusher" Smith, "TNT" Tucker, Pinklon Thomas, Frank Bruno ( during the first four rounds of their initial meeting ), "Buster" Douglas, "Razor" Ruddock, Holyfield, Botha ... all these men used some or all of these tactics to varrying degrees of success against Tyson. And not a one of them was as slick a boxer as Jimmy Young was in his prime.

As for Tyson just walking through Jimmy's supposedly "powder puff" punches, again, I beg to differ.
Though Young had a mediocre KO ratio & was by no means a banger, he was a sharp puncher who could more than get your attention. Especially with his quick, short, accurate counter right hand. A weapon that enabled him to stand up to some of the all time biggest & best hitters in heavyweight history in Earnie Shavers, Ron Lyle, Foreman, Ken Norton & Gerry Cooney ( a fight cut short by an elbow induced cut eye ).

My take on this hypothetical match up is: Jimmy Young W15 Mike Tyson.
With the distinct possibility of Tyson finding a reason to stay on his stool sometime late in the fight.

joe kurtz wrote:Wow. Everyone has a right to express their opinions, but damn, in my own, the vast majority of you are vastly exagerating Tyson's abilities & drastically under-estimating a prime Young's.

Style's make fights & boy, did Young ever have the style to SERIOUSLY f uck with Tyson.
Tyson always had trouble with fighters he couldn't hit solidly & who could hold him on the inside, which negated his handspeed & frustrated the hell out of him. Things that Young was a master of.

"Quick" Tillis, "Nino" Ribalta, "Bonecrusher" Smith, "TNT" Tucker, Pinklon Thomas, Frank Bruno ( during the first four rounds of their initial meeting ), "Buster" Douglas, "Razor" Ruddock, Holyfield, Botha ... all these men used some or all of these tactics to varrying degrees of success against Tyson. And not a one of them was as slick a boxer as Jimmy Young was in his prime.

As for Tyson just walking through Jimmy's supposedly "powder puff" punches, again, I beg to differ.
Though Young had a mediocre KO ratio & was by no means a banger, he was a sharp puncher who could more than get your attention. Especially with his quick, short, accurate counter right hand. A weapon that enabled him to stand up to some of the all time biggest & best hitters in heavyweight history in Earnie Shavers, Ron Lyle, Foreman, Ken Norton & Gerry Cooney ( a fight cut short by an elbow induced cut eye ).

My take on this hypothetical match up is: Jimmy Young W15 Mike Tyson.
With the distinct possibility of Tyson finding a reason to stay on his stool sometime late in the fight.

True, but Young never met anyone with Tyson's power AND hand speed.

Yeah i have to agree with the guy that posted above me, a fit in his prime Tyson (Prejail) destroys Most boxers in any era.

Jail Ruined Tyson.