‘You need to attack’: Mike Tyson on how he’d approach a dream fight against Tyson Fury

Tyson believes that the only way to dethrone the current lineal king is to be aggressive from the very first bell

Adam Hamdani
Wednesday 29 April 2020 14:26 BST
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Mike Tyson has revealed how he would beat current heavyweight king Tyson Fury if the pair came head-to-head in a fantasy fight, both at the peak of their powers.

Tyson, 53, is regarded as one of the greatest heavyweights in the history of boxing.

He became the first heavyweight to hold the WBA, WBC and IBF belts and later became the lineal champion.

Fury is the current lineal heavyweight king, having dethroned Wladimir Klitschko in November 2015. Since then he has added the WBC belt to his collection of titles by stopping Deontay Wilder earlier this year.

Speaking to Ring Magazine, Tyson said: “Against someone of Tyson Fury’s size, you’ve got to be aggressive, move your head and be elusive because if you stand still against a man that size, you’re an easy target.

“You need to attack, use angles and stay away from his punching distance. You need to be close, but you can’t stay at a distance that allows the bigger fighter to get off.”

But Tyson admitted it would not be an easy task to topple the 31-year-old, who has a professional record of 30-0-1.

He added: “A lot of people don’t understand that size and style isn’t the most important thing in the ring; it’s the morale of a fighter that leads to victory.

“His determination, his will to win, his desire is what makes him a champion.

“But at my best, I thought I was the greatest fighter from Achilles, through the Art of War, since the beginning of God, since the beginning of time – I was invincible.

“And if there are other fighters out there that don’t think that way, then they have a problem.”

Fury was meanwhile quizzed on whether he believes he would have beaten the likes of Tyson if they had met in their prime.

Tyson Fury is the current lineal king
Tyson Fury is the current lineal king (Getty)

“I don’t like to pit myself against boxing heroes in a virtual reality fight, because I find it disrespectful,” the current champion said.

“But my answer is that I’ll beat any man born from his mother. I just wouldn’t say that directly about any of the heroes from the past. But, deep down, I don’t believe that any fighter from the past can beat me.

“I think I’m the greatest fighter that’s ever lived – from any generation.”

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