Tough fight to pick. Ike was a very tough fighter that could punch and had a great chin but the biggest edge Tyson would have on him is hand speed. Tyson would consistently beat him to the punch, especially early in the fight. Prime Tyson also had good head movement and would make Ike miss some punches, I think if Ike could use the jab effectively against Mike he'd do well. I see a great fight with Mike just being busier and hitting Ike with the more effective and cleaner shots. I'd have to say Mike wins a brutal UD in a helluva fight.
This might surprise some but unless Tyson can land early, which is certainly possible, he loses this one.
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It's hard for some here to imagine Tyson losing. I still see occasional arguments against his losses to Douglas and Holyfield. I'll toss out the Douglas loss here because of the drastic differences in style between Douglas and Ibeabuchi.
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The reason I believe Tyson would lose this one is because Ibeabuchi would have shown No Fear of him. Add to that, it's not likely that Tyson's early rush would have discouraged "The President".
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Forget Tyson's alleged "boxing skills". He did have them but he rarely used them. You could argue that he didn't need them, with all his early knockout wins. The problem here is that it's not likely that he would be able to get Ibeabuchi out of there early.
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Tyson's other weakness is his unsettled mind. He was prone to doubt when things didn't go his way. This is the primary reason I believe he would have lost to ALI and why he lost to Holyfield. He bullied and Holyfield bullied right back and Tyson complained.
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The fight would range close. Ibeabuchi may or may not have punched as hard as Tyson. He certainly didn't have Tyson's speed. However, in the trenches, he was At Least as strong and likely stronger than Tyson. This would discourage Tyson early once he realizes Ibeabuchi isn't going anywhere anytime soon.
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I get that Tyson was a dominant champion. However, look at the list of fighters he never faced. Add the fighters he did face who beat him.
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Strength and Will would decide this one.
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Ibeabuchi by TKO in 11.
Mike Tyson was a highly-skilled fighter gifted with speed and tremendous hitting power. He's almost like a machine, but was very smart too. On the other hand, Ibeabuchi has not proven anything other than wins against Tua and Byrd. It's easy to surmise what might've been if he hadn't been jailed, but we're talking here of accomplishments and Ike, with all due respect, has nothing really to show. Tyson nails him inside 5 rounds,
The first Tyson (pre-prison) would have the speed and power to earn points round to round and keep up fight to finish in a UD
The 96 Tyson is basically the same Tyson 86 -90 within the first 5 rounds, beyond that distance Tyson would get in trouble and probably lose by KO or TKO within 10 - 12 rounds
Tyson 2002 falls within the first two or three rounds
My statistical analysis
Tyson by UD 116-112
Tough luck we did not get to see Tyson in there against the likes of prime time Terrible Tim Witherspoon, Big Daddy Riddick Bowe and Merciless Ray Mercer because Ike Ibeabuchi fought much like them and had their better qualities which they, especially Tim and Riddick employed in beating tough, rugged but smallish heavyweights. Tyson indeed fought and mostly beat big heavyweights but many were already just leftovers of a bygone era who proved to be no match to Holmes and his immediate heir apparent. Guys like Bruno, Tubbs, Tucker and even Razor Ruddock who proved to be very knockout-able.
Based on his fight against the very dangerous David Tua ( another fighter Tyson did not get to meet although Tua was already around and sowing his own terror in Mike's comeback ), I think Ibeabuchi would be another wrong opponent for Tyson to fight. Ike was very powerful and very conscious of his power and most importantly will not hesitate to put it to bear against any opponent most of all somebody as Tyson who like Tua was also intent of trying to subdue and beat him. That was one quality in Ike that I also found very admirable in the best prime Witherspoon---the killer's instinct.
In a fight I think both would want to land their best strongest punches first and more against one another in a bid to unnerve or take out ASAP one another. But Tyson would have been at disadvantage not only because Ike would enjoy the advantage in size, especially reach but also match him in intensity, energy and punching power and most importantly would not be intimidated and not hesitate to also go for the homerun.
Ike by mid to late round TKO mirroring Tyson's downfall against Buster Douglas. Oh yes, Ike would be willing and ready to trade with Tyson as that best version of Douglas, even more.
i agree with galatacus BUT i think tyson would be able to land enough punches in the first 5 rds to get the ref to jump in and save an upright ike who while iron jawed isn't the fastest and i feel tyson would beat him to the punch .
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Prime for prime, 12 rounds...
