Mike Tyson has dismissed Anthony Joshua’s claims that he would beat Muhammad Ali in a fantasy heavyweight boxing match.
During a live Instagram session with JD Sports, Anthony Joshua was asked to give his prediction for a showdown between Mike Tyson and Muhammad Ali.
He said: “It’s quite interesting because, in the era of Muhammad Ali’s heavyweight reign, the heavyweights were ranked as the cruiserweights of the Mike Tyson era.
“With Lennox Lewis, you know how they started getting bigger, hence why in the amateurs they then created a super-heavyweight division.
“The current heavyweight division in the amateurs is what we class as the cruiserweight division.
“So Muhammad Ali wouldn’t have been a fully fledged heavyweight.
“So let’s say we bulked Muhammad Ali up and put size and strength to him, I truly believe Mike Tyson would’ve won.
“The reason being when you watch the fight with Joe Frazier and Muhammad Ali, you see a certain Tyson-esque to Frazier’s style.
“Tyson used to study that Joe Frazier. The moving, the hooks. He managed to put Ali down in the fight, it was a very tough fight for Ali.
“And I just believe Mike Tyson was better schooled, times have evolved, Mike Tyson was more developed. More science, more information.
“So I think that Mike Tyson would’ve won, in my humble opinion.”
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Tyson reacting to the comparison said: “I know it’s a fantasy game.
“Most likely I would win the fantasy, I wouldn’t win the real fight.
“Ali’s the greatest there’s ever been.”