Mike Tyson: ‘No Way I Would Have Won’ Against Royce Gracie in Early UFC

http://www.sherdog.com/news/news/Mike-Tyson-No-Way-I-Would-Have-Won-Against-Royce-Gracie-in-Early-UFC-57851



Though the term “Baddest Man on the Planet” has been bandied about flippantly in mixed martial arts discussions over the past several years, the man who inspired the nickname will likely always be regarded as the true holder of that title.

Mike Tyson was the original “Baddest Man on the Planet” and remains a vivid part of boxing’s history due to his vicious knockout power and polarizing behavior. A the age of 20, the Cus D’Amato-trained pugilist became the youngest heavyweight boxing champion in history by knocking out Trevor Berbick in 1986, battering his foe with shots he would later describe as “hydrogen bombs,” according to the Los Angeles Times. Tyson would eventually unify the WBC, WBA, IBF and “The Ring” heavyweight titles to become the division’s undisputed emperor before a shocking upset at the hands of James “Buster” Douglas and a rape conviction cost him both his titles and his freedom.

The question has been posed countless times on MMA message boards: How would Mike Tyson have fared had he competed in the UFC?

According to the Brooklyn, N.Y., native, not very well. When asked by “UFC Tonight” host Chael Sonnen how he would have done in a fight against then-UFC tournament champion Royce Gracie, Tyson said he would not have possessed the technical tools to earn a victory against the grappler.

"Well, in '93, I was in prison, so there wouldn’t have been a fight, but there is no way I would have won,” said Tyson. “I had no idea what was going on with that type of fighting and would’ve been taken by surprise. I would have had to train in that particular art of fighting before that happened. That’s a particular art. You’re not going to go in there with just your hand and not have a great ground game. You also need a great wrestling game to be successful, and you won’t be exciting, as well. You have to have both games. You have to know how to wrestle and box. That’s just the truth."

As Tyson said, he was behind bars at the time of Gracie’s initial UFC dominance. However, had no-holds-barred fighting been popularized a few years earlier, the former heavyweight boxing champion believes he might now be looked at as a former Octagon combatant rather than just a fan of the current sport.

“That would have been awesome,” said Tyson. “I think I would have [tried MMA]. My ego would have told me I’m the best fighter in the world with all the particular fighting aspects, and I would have tried it.”

I love the current Mike Tyson. He always has great stories and good insight.

He has a good brain for the fight game and has no ego right now.

freakzilla wrote:

He has a good brain for the fight game and has no ego right now.

Yeah he has been humbled by his life experiences it seems. But he still obviously battles his demons.

Have any of you been watching his show on FS1? I keep missing it.

GDPofDRC wrote:

Have any of you been watching his show on FS1?  I keep missing it.

No but I bet it has some pretty cool moments. I saw him on Conan not too long ago promoting the show.

Tyson would've killed Royce. Look what Kimo did just by being a strong athletic dude who hasn't a total bum. He would've had a harder time with Shammy probably

I kind of think Tyson would of probably been able to KO Royce fast if they did a match. The speed, power and precision were definitely on a level that was dangerous enough for it to possibly be a two second, one punch fight. The advantages might lean in Gracie's favor overall, but Tyson knocking his head off can't surprise anyone I think.

nice to see a boxer lose the ego and speak the truth even though that first 5 seconds would of been scary as shit for royce haha

SOKO wrote:

nice to see a boxer lose the ego and speak the truth even though that first 5 seconds would of been scary as shit for royce haha

B-Hop has been pretty realistic about MMA as well. I think in the very beginning he hated on it. But I know after awhile he had a lot more respect for it and I remember hearing him on Rome saying they would kick his ass.

Hopkins only said that because he was asked in front of Randy a few months before. He changed his tune when he was in the same room as Couture. Then he was pro MMA after his bitchcard got called out.

Hopkins also now has some MMA guys coming to his gym and training stand-up. He has gotten an understanding of how hard they train and exactly what they do.

i think he would kill Royce but whatever