Riddick Bowe doesn't think Deontay Wilder could knock out Mike Tyson in his prime. The former undisputed world heavyweight champion shared his thoughts in a recent interview.
Bowe knows a thing or two about heavyweight boxing. He won an Olympic silver medal and held the undisputed world heavyweight championship in 1992. He's also famous for his trilogy with Evander Holyfield, winning two out of three fights.
Bowe made headlines when he threw his WBC heavyweight title in the trash rather than fight Lennox Lewis. It's a move that's still talked about today.
Wilder was seen as one of the best heavyweights before he faced Tyson Fury. He stopped every opponent he faced until then. But he lost two out of three fights against Fury, and his last fight in June ended with a loss to Zhilei Zhang in five rounds.
When asked about a hypothetical fight between Wilder and a prime Mike Tyson, Bowe didn't mince words. In an interview with Seconds Out, he said:
"Absolutely not. I beg to differ. He throws one punch. Me and Mike have three or four-punch combinations like Holyfield. If you're not punching like that you can forget about it. That long right hand, that one punch is not going to do it."
Bowe thinks Wilder's one-punch style won't cut it against Tyson. He points out that he and Tyson used combinations, not just single shots.
He went on to say:
"Matter of fact, that man gunna gas cause Tyson's gunna come and throw his right hand. Mike throws his right hand, what's going to happen? He couldn't beat Mike with that."
Bowe believes Wilder would tire out against Tyson's aggressive style. He doesn't think Wilder's approach would work against 'Iron Mike', who stopped all of his first 19 opponents inside six rounds.
Wilder's planning a comeback in April, with talks of a potential fight against Anthony Joshua in the future. But according to Bowe, he'd need more than his famous right hand to trouble a prime Mike Tyson.
