Mike Tyson didn’t hesitate when naming which boxing legend he wanted to face the most from any era

Mike Tyson picked a boxing legend as his dream opponent.

Mike Tyson didn't hesitate when naming which boxing legend he wanted to face the most from any era

Mike Tyson didn’t hesitate when he was asked to name his dream boxing opponent from any era.

Tyson took on all comers during his legendary professional career, fighting some of the biggest names of his generation.

He faced Evander Holyfield in back-to-back fights and had memorable showdowns against the likes of Larry Holmes, Michael Spinks and Lennox Lewis.

The 57-year-old, who fought fellow boxing icon Roy Jones Jr in an exhibition back in November 2020, was due to make his return to the ring on July 20 against Jake Paul.

However, the fight was postponed and rescheduled for November 15 after Tyson suffered an ulcer flare-up in May that prevented him from training.

During an interview with Steve Farhood on ShoBox, ‘Iron’ Mike was asked to name his dream opponent from any era to which he immediately opted for Floyd Mayweather.

Farhood laughed and said he ‘loved’ the answer before the former world heavyweight champion explained why a fight with Mayweather would’ve been interesting.

“Well, I would love to have fought him. I wish he was my weight,” he explained. “We can never fight, of course, because of the weight difference, but I wouldn’t fight him the way they fought him.”

Floyd Mayweather fought Jake Paul's brother, Logan, in 2021. Image: Getty
Floyd Mayweather fought Jake Paul’s brother, Logan, in 2021. Image: Getty

Mayweather walked away from the sport undefeated, recording a stunning 50-0 professional record.

But Tyson believes he’d have known exactly how to deal with Mayweather. He added: “I would be mean, I would be dirty. Because you’d have to do everything to fight him because he’s just so good.

“You can’t… it’s almost impossible to fight him clean. It’s just so hard to beat him.

“I don’t care. It’s really hard to beat him. The style he deploys – it’s really difficult to beat him in that particular style.

“I don’t care. Love him or hate him, he’s a hard man to beat. I would fight a guy like Floyd differently if he was a heavyweight.”