"Mike Tyson vs. Alex Stewart Mike Tyson vs. Alex Stewart, billed as ""The Hard Way Back"", was a professional boxing match contested on December 8, 1990. On February 11, 1990, Mike Tyson endured an upset loss to James ""Buster"" Douglas that cost him the undisputed Heavyweight Championship. Though he had hoped for a rematch, Douglas instead opted to face the number one contender, Evander Holyfield. As such, Tyson was forced to go down the comeback trail. His first opponent was 1984 Olympic Gold Medalist Henry Tillman, who had twice defeated Tyson as an amateur. Tyson easily defeated Tillman, knocking him"
"of Moorer in a rematch to reclaim the IBF title. After losing his titles in a unification fight with Lennox Lewis in 1999, Holyfield won his fourth heavyweight title by defeating John Ruiz for the WBA title in 2000. He promptly lost the title in his next fight against Ruiz, and after a draw in their third match, Holyfield largely faded away from the title scene. Buster Douglas vs. Evander Holyfield Buster Douglas vs Evander Holyfield, billed as ""The Moment of Truth"", was a professional boxing match contested on October 25, 1990 for the WBA, WBC, IBF, ""The Ring"" and"
"Following the unification series, there were ongoing calls for Tyson and Spinks to fight, to erase any doubt about the identity of the ""true"" champion. In June 1988, the two champions faced off, and Tyson knocked out Spinks in 91 seconds. Tyson held on to his titles until February 1990, when he was knocked out by Buster Douglas. The titles remained unified until December 1992, when undisputed champion Riddick Bowe relinquished his WBC title. Heavyweight unification series The heavyweight unification series, also known as the Heavyweight World Series, was a sequence of professional boxing matches held in 1986 and 1987"
"Evander Holyfield vs. George Foreman Evander Holyfield vs. George Foreman, billed as ""The Battle of the Ages"", was a professional boxing match contested on April 19, 1991 for the WBA, WBC, IBF and Lineal Heavyweight championships. On October 25, 1990, Evander Holyfield defeated James ""Buster"" Douglas by third round knockout to become the Undisputed Heavyweight Champion. Prior to his match with Douglas, Holyfield delayed a potential fight with Mike Tyson, instead agreeing to face 42-year-old George Foreman for the titles should he defeat Douglas. Since ending his 10-year retirement in 1987, Foreman was a perfect 24–0, with 23 of his"
"Evander Holyfield vs. George Foreman Evander Holyfield vs. George Foreman, billed as ""The Battle of the Ages"", was a professional boxing match contested on April 19, 1991 for the WBA, WBC, IBF and Lineal Heavyweight championships. On October 25, 1990, Evander Holyfield defeated James ""Buster"" Douglas by third round knockout to become the Undisputed Heavyweight Champion. Prior to his match with Douglas, Holyfield delayed a potential fight with Mike Tyson, instead agreeing to face 42-year-old George Foreman for the titles should he defeat Douglas. Since ending his 10-year retirement in 1987, Foreman was a perfect 24–0, with 23 of his"
"Undisputed Heavyweight Championship. His next fight would be against little-known James ""Buster"" Douglas on February 11, 1990, in Tokyo, Japan. Despite being a 42-1 underdog, Douglas was able to knock out Tyson in the 10th round to pull off the upset and become the new Undisputed Champion. HBO, which broadcast the fight live across the nation, did not expect the early conclusion and was hence forced to fill time with episodes of ""The Kids In The Hall"" and ""HBO One Night Stand"" (prior to the latter, they put up a card explaining the unscheduled broadcast). Mike Tyson vs. Carl Williams"
"to do so as they considered the fight such a foregone conclusion) had Douglas as a 42-to-1 underdog for the fight, making his victory, in commentator Jim Lampley's words, ""The biggest upset in the history of heavyweight championship fights."" Douglas held the title for eight months and two weeks, losing on October 25, 1990, to Evander Holyfield via third-round knockout, in his only title defense. The son of professional boxer William ""Dynamite"" Douglas, Douglas grew up in Columbus, Ohio, in the predominantly black Linden neighborhood of Windsor Terrace. He attended Linden McKinley High School, where he played football and basketball,"
"undefeated ""baddest man on the planet"" and the most feared boxer in professional boxing at that time, at the hands of the 42–1 betting odds underdog Douglas, has been described as one of the most shocking upsets in modern sports history. Douglas was widely regarded as a ""tomato can"", lined up to provide an easy victory for Tyson at that time. Later, Douglas lost his first title defense against Evander Holyfield and was never able to successfully compete at such a high level again. The biggest upset in mixed martial arts is considered by many, including UFC president Dana White"
"As Tyson began to reel back from the uppercut, Douglas immediately followed with four punches to the head, knocking Tyson down for the first time in his career. In a famous scene, Tyson fumbled for his mouthpiece on the canvas before sticking one end in his mouth with the other end hanging out. The champion attempted to make it back to his feet to continue fighting but referee Octavio Meyran counted him out. Buster Douglas thus became the new undisputed heavyweight champion and the fight became one of the biggest upsets in boxing history. The official scorecards through nine rounds"
"in the world pound-for-pound (including by ""Ring Magazine""), a rarity for heavyweights. Buster Douglas was ranked as the #7 heavyweight by ""Ring Magazine"", and had met with mixed success in his professional boxing career up to that point. His previous title fight was against Tony Tucker in 1987, in which he was TKO'd in the 10th round. However, a string of six consecutive wins gave him the opportunity to fight Tyson. In the time leading up to the fight, Douglas faced a number of setbacks, including the death of his mother, Lula Pearl, 23 days before the fight. Additionally, the"
"Tokyo to become the new Undisputed Heavyweight Champion. Instead of fighting Tyson, Holyfield was Douglas' first title defense. They met on October 25, 1990. Douglas came into the fight at 246 lb. and offered little in the fight against Holyfield, who was in ideal shape at 208 lb. In the third round Douglas tried to start a combination with a big right uppercut. Holyfield countered with a straight right hand and Douglas went down for the count. Holyfield was the new undefeated, Undisputed Heavyweight Champion of the World. At the time of the knockout, Holyfield was ahead on all three"
"Tyson, claiming illness, cancelled and opted instead to fight James ""Buster"" Douglas in Tokyo. Tyson would go on to lose in one of the biggest upsets in boxing history. 1990, Ruddock fought former heavyweight champion Michael Dokes. Ruddock went into the fight as underdog but put on one of the best performances of his career knocking out Dokes in the 4th round. Dokes appeared to be seriously stunned on the ropes after taking Ruddock's famous ""Smash"" left hook. A right hand followed, which appeared to put Dokes out, but Ruddock threw another two hooks and Dokes was knocked out cold"
"to its dramatic and controversial ending that continues to be widely debated to this day. It would later be named ""The Ring"" magazine's Fight of the Year for 1990, and later the ""Fight of the Decade"" for the 1990s. From the mid 80s until early 1990 much of the attention given to boxing, particularly by the casual fan, was devoted to Mike Tyson. This served to overshadow a number of bouts and emerging stars in the lower weight classes. However, after Tyson lost to Buster Douglas in February 1990, it would give other bouts and fighters a new chance to"
"number 2 contender, Buster Douglas. Tucker won the bout, and the vacant IBF crown, via 10th-round technical knockout. Tucker, as the winner of the IBF title, was obliged to immediately defend his title in a unification bout with WBA and WBC champion Mike Tyson, in what would be the tournament final. Despite having a broken right hand, Tucker faced Tyson on August 1, 1987. Tyson defeated Tucker by unanimous decision to unify the three championship titles, in the process giving Tucker the distinction of having the shortest championship reign in the history of the Heavyweight division (64 days). Coincidentally, eight"
"round of their third match. Then, in his most recent fight, Holyfield knocked out an out-of-shape former cruiserweight champion Bobby Czyz in five rounds. Don King, Tyson's promoter, saw Holyfield as a washed up fighter and Holyfield was installed as a major underdog. A fight between Tyson and Holyfield was first arranged in 1990, when Tyson was the undisputed champion, predicated on Tyson's defeating James ""Buster"" Douglas. Instead, Douglas handed Tyson the first defeat of his career, stopping him in the 10th round. A grossly out-of-shape Douglas then lost the title to Holyfield in his first defense, on a third-round"
"as the biggest all-British heavyweight bout since Cooper Vs Bugner in 1971. The bout took place in late 1987, and Bugner suffered an eighth-round TKO loss to the much younger and fresher world title contender for the Commonwealth championship in front of a huge crowd at White Hart Lane football stadium. Bugner promptly retired again following this defeat, only his 3rd stoppage defeat in 20 years. Inspired by the 45-year-old George Foreman's recapture of the heavyweight title, Bugner made a final comeback in 1995, beating Vince Cervi to win the Australian heavyweight title, followed by a win over West Turner."
"knockout, becoming the new undisputed heavyweight champion in the process. Tyson then embarked on a comeback in hopes of securing a championship match with either Douglas or Evander Holyfield, who were scheduled to face each other for the undisputed heavyweight title on October 25, 1990. Tyson would go on to defeat Henry Tillman, Alex Stewart and Donovan Ruddock twice before being arrested and sentenced to prison for rape. When Tyson was released in 1995, he returned to boxing and easily defeated journeymen Peter McNeeley and Buster Mathis, Jr. This would set up a rematch with Bruno for Bruno's newly won"
"This made Tyson the first heavyweight boxer to simultaneously hold the WBA, WBC and IBF titles, and the only heavyweight to successively unify them. Tyson became the lineal champion in 1988 when he knocked out Michael Spinks in 91 seconds of the first round. He successfully defended his titles nine times, which included victories over Larry Holmes and Frank Bruno. In 1990, Tyson lost the titles to underdog Buster Douglas, who knocked him out in the tenth round. Attempting to regain the titles, Tyson defeated Donovan Ruddock twice in 1991, but pulled out of a fight with then-undisputed heavyweight champion"
"Douglas, however, had other plans and subjected a stunned champion to a severe pounding. Tyson was so unprepared that his corner did not bring proper equipment to the fight, with no ice bag or endswell, and was forced to use a latex glove filled with water to try to reduce the swelling to his eye. Despite being knocked down in the eighth round, Douglas bounced back and knocked Tyson out in the tenth round to claim the title in what was called by Jim Lampley, broadcasting the fight for HBO, as ""the single biggest upset in the history of heavyweight"
"bouts. Meanwhile, at light welterweight, Mexican Julio César Chávez compiled an official record of 89-0 before fighting to a controversial draw in 1993 with Pernell Whitaker, who later also became a great boxer. In the late 1990s Chavez was superseded by Olympic gold medalist Oscar De La Hoya, who became the most popular pay-per-view draw of his era. De la Hoya won championships in six weight classes, competing with fighters including Chavez, Whitaker, and Félix Trinidad. In the late 1990s Mike Tyson made a comeback, which took an unexpected turn when he was defeated by heavy underdog Evander Holyfield in"
"to sign on Douglas for the event. At the end of the match, Douglas was provoked into a kayfabe punch and knockout of Savage, who was the heel wrestler in the match. The defeated Tyson clamored for a rematch and Douglas was offered more money than he had ever made for a fight. Not wanting to deal with Tyson's camp or his promoter Don King, Douglas decided to make his first defense against #1 contender Evander Holyfield, who had watched the new champion dethrone Tyson from ringside in Tokyo. Douglas went into the October 25, 1990 fight at 246 pounds,"
"and Zeljko Mavrovic in Germany. In 1994 in his final fight Bey knocked out David Jaco in China. Bey died in a construction accident in Camden in 2017. David Bey David Bey (March 11, 1957 – September 14, 2017) was a heavyweight boxer who held the USBA title, and challenged Larry Holmes for the world title in 1985. Bey was an outstanding amateur boxer who had taken up the sport to lose weight and eventually competed on the U.S. All Army Boxing Team. He made his professional debut in 1981, defeating future undisputed world heavyweight champion James ""Buster"" Douglas by"
"Lennox Lewis vs. Tony Tucker Lennox Lewis vs. Tony Tucker, billed as ""Star Spangled Glory"", was a professional boxing match contested on May 8, 1993 for the WBC Heavyweight Championship. After defeating the WBC's number one ranked heavyweight Donovan ""Razor"" Ruddock on October 31, 1992, Lennox Lewis became the number one contender for the WBC Heavyweight championship, which at the time was unified with both the WBA and IBF versions of the heavyweight title. Two weeks after his victory over Ruddock, challenger Riddick Bowe defeated champion Evander Holyfield to claim all three titles and become the new Undisputed Heavyweight Champion."
"going to feel better about myself. I'm not going to be depressed"", explained Tyson about the reasons for his ""comeback"". A 1998 ranking of ""The Greatest Heavyweights of All-Time"" by ""Ring"" magazine placed Tyson at No.14 on the list. Despite criticism of facing underwhelming competition during his run as champion, Tyson's knockout power and intimidation factor made him the sport's most dynamic box office attraction. According to Douglas Quenqua of ""The New York Times"", ""The [1990s] began with Mike Tyson, considered by many to be the last great heavyweight champion, losing his title to the little-known Buster Douglas. Seven years"
"HBO studios. Although the IBF immediately recognized Douglas as its champion, the WBA and WBC initially refused due to Tyson's protest. However, Tyson withdrew his protest four days later amid worldwide public outcry and demands from boxing commissions around the world, and Douglas was officially recognized as undisputed heavyweight champion. While still champion, Douglas appeared on the February 23, 1990 episode of the World Wrestling Federation's ""The Main Event"", as special guest referee for a rematch between Hulk Hogan and ""Macho Man"" Randy Savage. Originally, Tyson was scheduled to be the guest referee, but following the upset, the WWF scrambled"
"Following his release from the Indiana Youth Center in 1995 he quickly regained the WBA and WBC world titles, before losing them to Holyfield and was never again a world champion. He fought on sporadically for another decade and lost in another title challenge against Lennox Lewis in 2002. He retired from boxing in 2005 after consecutive losses to journeymen. Buster Douglas went down in sports lore as a prize fighter that defied the odds to accomplish one of the biggest upsets in sports history. Among the honors was a cover photo on an issue of ""Sports Illustrated"" with the"
"a unification match with Tony Tucker, who was able to capture the IBF Heavyweight Championship by defeating Buster Douglas by 10th round technical knockout prior to the Tyson–Thomas fight. The two men went the full 12 rounds, with Tyson ultimately picking up the victory by unanimous decision to become the first Undisputed Heavyweight Champion since Leon Spinks in 1978. Mike Tyson vs. Pinklon Thomas Mike Tyson vs. Pinklon Thomas, billed as ""Hard Road to Glory"", was a professional boxing match contested on May 30, 1987, for the WBA and WBC heavyweight championships. In 1986, the three major boxing organizations, the"
"scepter as a weapon numerous times. The ""Macho King"" and Hulk Hogan met one last time (intended to end their ongoing year-long feud), when Savage got a shot at Hogan's WWF World Heavyweight Championship on the February 23, 1990 episode of ""The Main Event"". The pinfall was counted by new heavyweight boxing champion Buster Douglas despite Savage kicking out at two, Douglas then punched Savage in the face after Savage confronted and then slapped Douglas. Savage then began feuding with the ""Common Man"" Dusty Rhodes, losing a mixed tag match (along with Sherri) to Rhodes and Sapphire at WrestleMania VI"
"Heavyweight unification series The heavyweight unification series, also known as the Heavyweight World Series, was a sequence of professional boxing matches held in 1986 and 1987 to crown an undisputed champion of the heavyweight class. The series was produced by HBO Sports and promoted by Don King. It ended with Mike Tyson as undisputed champion, holding the championship belts of the International Boxing Federation, World Boxing Association, and World Boxing Council. Prior to the series, the last undisputed heavyweight champion had been Leon Spinks, who won the championship in his 1978 victory over Muhammad Ali. Spinks had been stripped of"
"the Columbus boxing community. This moniker was affixed to Douglas because of a misinterpreted encyclopedia entry regarding Douglas MacArthur and Erwin Rommel. Several friends of Buster Douglas mistakenly believed that Douglas MacArthur was known as the ""Desert Fox"" and subsequently addressed the future heavyweight champion as such. However, Buster Douglas distanced himself from the ""Desert Fox"" label no later than 1985 because of clarification from his promotional team and the concern that he might be confused with Syrian boxer Ghiath Tayfour. Douglas made his debut on May 31, 1981, and defeated Dan O'Malley in a four-round bout. He won his"
"former Olympic silver medalist, Riddick Bowe. The later 1990s was dominated by Lennox Lewis who unified the division in 1999. The 1990s also saw the emergence of the battles between the British super middleweight fighters Chris Eubank, Michael Watson and Nigel Benn, all of whose careers ended in tragedy. Diego Corrales defeats John Brown by unanimous decision to retained his IBF Super Featherweight Championship Boxing in the 1990s As in the 1980s, the 1990s in boxing's popularity focused on all divisions. When 1980s legends Sugar Ray Leonard, Thomas Hearns, as well as others retired, newer superstars filled the void: Pernell"
"Mike Tyson vs. Pinklon Thomas Mike Tyson vs. Pinklon Thomas, billed as ""Hard Road to Glory"", was a professional boxing match contested on May 30, 1987, for the WBA and WBC heavyweight championships. In 1986, the three major boxing organizations, the WBA, WBC and IBF, teamed with HBO to develop the heavyweight unification series, a tournament that would ultimately unify all three Heavyweight titles and determine the next Undisputed Champion. The first fight in the series pitted WBC Heavyweight champion Pinklon Thomas against Trevor Berbick on March 22, 1986. Berbick captured the WBC Heavyweight title after defeating Thomas by unanimous"
"Mike Tyson vs. Donovan Ruddock Mike Tyson vs. Donovan Ruddock, billed as ""The Fight of the Year"", was a professional boxing match contested on March 18, 1991. After losing the Undisputed Heavyweight Championship to James ""Buster"" Douglas on February 11, 1990, Mike Tyson embarked on a comeback hopes of regaining his title. First, he knocked out 1984 Olympic Gold Medalist and former amateur opponent, Henry Tillman in the first round. Then, he met up-and-coming prospect Alex Stewart, whose 26 victories had all come by way of knockout. Despite Stewart's impressive resume, Tyson picked up another easy victory by way of"