Isaac Cruz, who received the ultimate praise from Mike Tyson, defeated Angel Fierro in a thrilling war.

Cruz was fighting on the huge Premier Boxing Champions bill topped by David Benavidez’s mouth-watering clash with David Morrell at the T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas.

The savage 5ft 4ins super-lightweight was looking to get back in the winning column, having lost his WBA world title by split decision to Jose Valenzuela last August.

His power-punching and relentlessly aggressive style has seen him identified by heavyweight legend Tyson, as fighting similarly to himself in his frightening prime.

All-action was promised and the showdown delivered with 1410 punches thrown by both men, who clashed in a cocktail of concussive and savage punches.

But it was Cruz who had his hand raised, as he got the edge in the sensational spectacle on the judges scorecards who saw the fight at 96-94, 97-93 and 98-92 in his favour.

From the very first bell the pair got straight into vicious exchanges, with Cruz letting his hands go and attacking Fierro in promising early output.

He didn’t take a backwards step early on tagging his rival with some big shots and trundling slowly towards him, but Fierro tried to match him toe-to-toe.

Fierro worked off the back foot looking to counter punch and looked to use his physical size advantages, but absorbed some damaging blows from Cruz in the second.

Riddick Bowe is a golden era heavyweight who had strong views when asked how Deontay Wilder would fair against Mike Tyson.

Bowe is a former Olympic silver medalist who turned over and soon made his mark in the pro ranks. He held the undisputed world heavyweight championship in 1992 and fought Evander Holyfield three times, beating him twice and losing once.

He famously threw his WBC heavyweight title in the bin rather than agreeing to fight Lennox Lewis and eventually retired in 2008.

Until he faced Tyson Fury and lost two of the three contests in their trilogy, former world champion Wilder was considered one of the best heavyweights on the planet and a punching machine who had stopped every man he faced. ‘Iron Mike’ had a similar record early on, stopping all of his first 19 opponents inside the sixth round.

Speaking to Seconds Out, Bowe was asked how he felt about Wilder’s claims he would knock Tyson out.

“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.

“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.”

Wilder has not fought since June when he was stopped inside five rounds by Zhilei Zhang, although he is slated to make his comeback in April with a view to fighting Anthony Joshua down the line.

Despite being one of the most feared fighters in boxing history, there is one man who claims Mike Tyson was too ‘scared’ to fight him.

‘Iron’ Mike still holds the record of being the youngest world heavyweight champion ever, 39 years from his incredible second round knockout win over Trevor Berbick to capture the WBC heavyweight title

Tyson went on to hold the undisputed heavyweight championship from 1987 to 1990, before he was dethroned in a dramatic loss to James ‘Buster’ Douglas in Japan.

In a shock revelation, another legendary big man made claims that Tyson did not go through with a fight with him during their respective careers because he was ‘scared’.

Speaking to ESPN, thudding puncher and Hall of Fame heavyweight George Foreman was asked if ‘Iron’ Mike had any interest in facing him.

“No way. one of us was scared and the other was glad of that. [He was scared and I was glad], amen.”

Foreman – who still holds the record as the heavyweight division’s oldest ever world champion – was then asked to explain why he believed the once formidable ‘Iron’ Mike was scared of him.

“I could really punch. And of course I was an expert at punching downward, my manager would hold the bag and he was down there, so I learned to really develop power from punching guys that were down low. He [Tyson] was smart enough to understand that.”

A showdown between ‘Big ‘ George and Tyson never materialised, though was a possibility in the early nineties has Tyson not lost his title to Douglas, which has left boxing fans wonder what really could have happened in a fight between two of boxing’s greatest ever heavyweights.

The highly anticipated fight between Canelo and Crawford could take place in September 2025

Arab sheikh Turki Al-Sheikh, an avid boxing fan, promised that by 2025 he will bring several world-class fights, but the jewel in the crown could be the long-awaited fight between Saul Canelo Alvarez and Terence Crawford, which could be in the works for September.

Both fighters spoke, away from Al-Sheikh’s radar, during a meeting in London last week, and it seems that they would have started the negotiating points for the long-awaited fight between two of the best pound-for-pound fighters today, reported Boxing News Online.

The fight is planned to take place on the weekend of the celebrations for Mexico’s Independence Day in mid-September, ESPN reported.

ESPN boxing specialist Mike Coppinger noted that: “From what I’m told, they’re in the process of finalizing a deal for a fight in September, Mexican Independence Day weekend. And it will be in Las Vegas with the 168-pound weight limit, no rehydration clause.”

However, there is one issue to be defined, and that is that Crawford (41-0, 31 KOs) would require an additional 14-pound weight jump to match the weight and category of the Mexican fighter.

Canelo (62-2-2, 39 KOs) has been moving up in weight over the years, after starting out at super welterweight, where he won the WBC world title, and later became the unified middleweight champion (160 pounds). He made a brief stop at light heavyweight (175 pounds) and defeated Sergey Kovalev to win the IBF belt before dropping down to super middleweight, where he would become the first undisputed four-belt champion.

Tyson’s opposition to Canelo-Crawford

“You know I don’t like that fight. I don’t like that fight. For him (Crawford) the weight difference seemed quite annoying. It’s a lot of weight,” Tyson said.

And to reaffirm his statement, Tyson recalled the fight between Crawford and Israel Madrimov in August 2024, when Crawford reigned as welterweight champion, and moved up to 154 pounds.

Reports now suggest that he might be gearing up for another fight

Mike Tyson is reportedly considering a comeback to the ring for a rematch with his old rival, Evander Holyfield. Tyson’s retirement following a highly publicized defeat to Jake Paul in a Netflix event seemed to signal the end of his boxing career, but reports now suggest that he might be gearing up for another fight.

The two first clashed in the 1990s, with their rivalry becoming infamous after Tyson bit off part of Holyfield’s ear during their 1997 rematch.

The latest claim comes from actor and martial arts expert Paulo Tocha, who has insight into Tyson’s possible plans. Tocha, best known for his role in Bloodsport alongside Jean-Claude Van Damme, shared his thoughts on Tyson‘s return to the ring. According to Tocha, Tyson has hinted at facing Holyfield again, despite having been retired for a period.

Tyson’s potential comeback

Paulo Tocha, who has connections to Tyson’s inner circle, revealed that the Brooklyn-born boxer has been contemplating a return to the sport.

“At the end [of the Paul fight], he kind of let us know there’s another one coming,” Tocha explained. “Most probably it’s going to be Evander after all. He and Evander – after what happened to his ear and all that. So most probably it’ll be something like that.”

Despite Tyson‘s lackluster performance against Jake Paul, which many fans criticized, Tocha believes the match served as a critical warm-up for the former champion

“I thought it was a good show, a warm-up for Tyson,” Tocha stated. “He got to get some rust off of the ring, got to feel himself again, caught himself back again on top.”

For Tyson, who has made a successful transition into the world of business, including a cannabis empire, boxing is more than just about money – it’s also about proving himself once more. Tocha understands that many fans might expect too much from Tyson, especially given his age.

However, he defended the boxer’s legacy and skills, acknowledging that Tyson’s performance at his age could never match the prime days of his youth.

“But you’ve got to understand the fighter’s game, and at that age, you’re not supposed to be in the ring, even if you’re spectacular. It’s just not so good for the brain,” he noted.

I feel with Tyson, he is exactly in that spot because the audience that’s watching him now doesn’t understand boxing from the old days.

They’ve got no clue. He’s just a new name, a newcomer, and he’s part of a family tradition of fighters who watched Tyson throughout his career. It doesn’t matter when or if it’s raining or snowing or sunshine. It’s Tyson that’s fighting. It’s the name. I love him because of that.”

Moses Itauma’s chances of taking Mike Tyson’s record as boxing’s youngest ever heavyweight world champion appear to be over.

Itauma is considered one of the brightest young prospects in the blue-riband division, with his ferocious punching power and unique skills attracting the attention of the boxing world.

When setting out as a professional, he faced huge comparisons to heavyweight legend and former undisputed champion Tyson, for his front-thinking style.

Before his professional debut in January 2023 aged 19, Itauma had vowed to fight in pursuit of beating Tyson’s record as the youngest world heavyweight champion in the sport’s history.

‘Iron Mike’ captured the feat with a stunning win over Trevor Berbick in 1986, winning the WBC belt at the age of 20 years and four months old.

Itauma recently turned 20 on December 28, giving him until the end of April to break Tyson’s record and get his hands on a world title belt.

But it is now highly unlikely given his potential WBO interim title clash with Justis Huni will now be delayed until later in 2025.

During an interview with talkSPORT, Itauma’s promoter Francis Warren discussed the route to the pinnacle of the division, with his next outing plotted for April.

He said: “Yeah there is moving parts, you know what business is like, it could change tomorrow.

Teddy Atlas has discussed how Mike Tyson would have fared in a number of fantasy fights.

‘Iron Mike’ is widely regarded as one of the greatest heavyweights of all time, having been the division’s youngest world champion at the age of just 20, and also holding undisputed honours in the weight class from 1987 to 1990.

It has led to debates over how Tyson would have performed against some of the other greats from different eras, with boxing fans regularly wondering how he’d have done against the likes of Muhammad Ali, George Foreman and Joe Frazier.

Respected analyst and former Tyson coach Atlas has thrown Sonny Liston into the mix, the former world heavyweight champion who twice knocked out Floyd Patterson inside the very first round.

Liston also had two infamous fights against Ali, losing them both, before he sadly died at the age of just 40 in 1970, with his final record standing at 50 wins and 4 defeats, 39 of those wins by knockout.

Atlas was certain of who would have won between ‘Iron Mike’ and Liston whilst speaking on The Fight Podcast, insisting that it would have been a dominant victory for Liston.

“Tyson would be at the end of that jab like a coyote on a locomotive. flat, pulverised. That jab would have hit him and sent a message, a physical and a mental message, you’re in the wrong place at the wrong time, get the hell out.

“Liston was the naturally bigger guy and a tremendous body puncher. He’d have gone to the body with that power. Everything he threw was hard. That body attack from Liston would have taken away and eliminated the head movement and elusive ability from Tyson.

“Tyson might have needed a diaper to get in the ring with Liston. He would have intimidated Tyson. It would have been his worse nightmare. Tyson gets knocked out in the fight.”

Despite picking Liston to win, Atlas remains a fan of ‘Iron’ Mike. That hasn’t stopped him recently naming the young fighter who he believes has what it takes to break his record and become the youngest world heavyweight champion in history.

A few months removed from the highly controversial boxing fight between Jake Paul and Mike Tyson, and it is still big talk in the combat sports world.

This past November, Jake Paul caused even more controversy in the boxing world when he took on 58-year-old Mike Tyson in a professional boxing bout.

‘The Problem Child’ went on to pick up a unanimous decision win after a relatively passive fight, which subsequently went on to break modern viewership records after being live-streamed on Netflix.

UFC legend Don Frye ‘disgusted’ by Jake Paul’s fight against Mike Tyson

Despite the fact that we are now a few months removed from the controversial contest, UFC legend, Don Frye, has admitted that it made him want to ‘vomit’.

The fight was slammed by several professionals who thought it was a bad idea for Paul to fight someone 31 years his elder, especially considering ‘Iron Mike’s’ health concerns over the past few years.

It didn’t help the controversy when Tyson came out after the fight and admitted that in the lead-up to it, he feared for his life and ‘almost died’ following his ulcer flare-up which resulted in several blood transfusions.

“I tell you what buddy, that (fight) made me want to vomit,” Frye said (h/t garyhgoodridge)

“I was so disgusted with that I had to go home and put in Tommy Hearns and Sugar Ray Robinson and Sugar Ray Leonard and Jake Lamotta, Rocky Marciano I had to watch some real fighters because if I didn’t I’d never watch another boxing match again. That was a fraud,” he continued.