Mike Tyson Disappointed in James Toney, but Still Believes in Boxers Transitioning to MMA
By: Oliver Saenz Posted On: September 29, 2010 at 10:12am
He’s one of the most dominant, controversial, highest-paid, notorious, and (in my humble opinion) misunderstood pro boxers of all time. There is only one Mike Tyson, and “Iron” Mike has been an unabashed fan of Mixed Martial Arts for quite some time. In fact, Tyson is scheduled to appear as a guest on an upcoming episode of “The Ultimate Fighter”. In a recent interviewer with The Canadian Press, the famed former boxing champion took on the controversial subject of fellow former pro boxer James Toney trying (and utterly failing) at competing in Mixed Martial Arts.
Here’s what Tyson had to say: “You have to admit, Toney looked horrible. He looked slow. He didn’t look like a seasoned, conditioned athlete. You only had to look at his body structure. No way, Toney didn’t get ready to fight a real, professional athlete like Randy is. It was ridiculous. He had no respect for Randy. I know 100 per cent that a boxer (could win). As long as he learns how to grapple and wrestle, he could do great. You’ve got to go in there respecting the sport, and not just thinking you’re going to knock somebody out every time. It’s a complicated sport, but a good boxer has to be a great athlete anyway.”
I agree with Tyson on pretty much everything he said, and I’m not saying that as a Tyson fan. I think a good boxer could become a good Mixed Martial Artist. I think any dedicated athlete can become a Mixed Martial Artist, given the right amount of training and dedication. Mixed Martial Arts is the home to so many other talents that cross over from other combat-oriented sports such as Muay Thai, Brazilian Jui Jitsu, and wrestling…so why not boxing? There’s already a precedent in place with guys like Chris Lytle and Marcus Davis. It all depends on how seriously one takes the sport.
The problem with pro boxers trying to get into MMA is the same thing that holds back all the other one-sport individuals trying to make it big in the UFC and other organizations: their one-dimensionality. No matter how good you are at one dimension, you will end up being beaten by a more complete fighter. It’s happened to everybody, even if their one dimension was enough to get them through several successful fights. As far as examples go, Demian Maia and Josh Koscheck immediately spring to mind, as does Paul Daley. Being able to impose your will and fight your fight solely in your comfort zone only gets you so far, and for many athletes-turned-fighters, “so far” isn’t far at all.
No matter who you’d like to see step into an Octagon or ring, no matter how successful you think they’ll be, in the end their pure talent is usually not a match for the years of experience and hard training that a professional Mixed Martial Artist undergoes. I learned my lesson with James Toney, I’m not giving anyone in boxing, or any other sport for that matter, a shot in MMA unless they prove beyond a shadow of a doubt that they’re taking it seriously. But if they do, then you can bet that I’m rooting for them. And if they don’t, I’ve always said (and I still believe) that a good “freak show fight” is fun every once in awhile.
And what about you, fans and friends? What’s your take on Tyson’s stance? And just for fun, imagine your favorite athlete with a year or two of solid MMA training. How well do you think he/she would do in MMA?
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Comments
I think Tyson himself would do great in MMA..the way he is build could be the best possible way in MMA. It’s hard to submit someone that compact and strong. He would still need 1-2 years of grappling training and some warmups against soft opposition. Imagine Tyson ground and pound someone ? That’s a scary thought.
I think that Mike is pretty much dead on in his comments about MMA v.s. boxing. I think that the very best fighters on Earth are boxers followed VERY closely by wrestlers. In fact, the two forms of violence are so close that I think it would all depend on the fighters in question. One thing I’m tired of hearing about is the so-called ‘one dimension’ ability of boxers. Anyone who’s ever studieor trained to box knows that the science of it is to hit without getting hit. It’s NOT just fighting with your hands. In fact, every great boxer, from Ali to Pernell Whitaker, fight more with their feet than their hands. They use their legs to set you up, so it’s not just fighting with the hands. And I don’t care what type of fighter you are, without footwork you’re not gonna be great. And please…enough about the styles of fighters. There are only TWO kinds of fighters in the world: offensive fighters and defensive fighters. No matter if you use kung fu, boxing, wrestling, kick-boxing,etc., you’re either the knid of fighter that initiates the action, or you’re the type of fighter that waits and counters. It’s really not more complicated than that. Hard for me to imagine a young Ali being taken to the ground by a wrestler with the legendary foot speed he had. Remember his fight with Inoki? LOL.
@Mtwa Your right on some points but your totally of on the whole “footwork” aspect. You can’t use footwork to escape a wrestler’s clinch or shot no matter how much you try Ali would get beat easily against a wrestler. Tell me how many times did Inoki attempt a takedown in that fight with Ali? I doubt he was allowed to take him down or perform any stand-up leg kicks.
if its 1 dimensional boxer vs 1 dimensional wrestler, wrestler wins. if the boxer has great TDD and understanding of wrestling then boxer not only wins but is very dangerous to anyone out there that’s what Tyson is trying to point out
Yes a boxer utilising a boxing stance in MMA will get his leg kicked onto the roof of the stadium.Iron Mike would have ben a terifying prospect at 205 light heavyweight class if he had the ground game and stuff-8 points of contact beats 2 as they say in MMA!
I think the hardest thing boxers have to overcome is the fact that it’s ingrained in their psychology that a lot of MMA stuff is “dirty” in boxing. I think it’s mostly psychological.