Who would win? Mike Tyson or Bruce Lee?

[WillyBrandt]

Poll question: Who would win? Mike Tyson or Bruce Lee?

A medium sized room, well lit, devoid of furniture or other objects. The competitors are Mike Tyson in his prime, and Bruce Lee in his prime.

The two aren't wearing anything that can be used as a weapon; just fighting trunks.

There are no weapons of any sort in the room.

It's just them two. The loser is the first person to be incapacitated, to be knocked out for more than ten seconds, to quit, or (in our hypothetical case) to die. The winner is the other guy.

Who would win? Bruce Lee or Mike Tyson?

[WillyBrandt]

1. Only one person for Mike? He was (is) an extremely powerful fighter...

[democracyindanger]

2. But Tyson would never

land a punch.

[WillyBrandt]

4. Have you ever seen a real fight?

It's a mess, and strength and size and psychopathy are real advantages. I just wonder how much of Bruce's skill would work against the Beast.

[democracyindanger]

Yeah, I have

and there's some truth to what you're saying, but you can't discount speed and elusiveness. The scenario you're describing is like a street fight, and in any street fight, all things being equal, you gotta bet on the martial artist over the boxer.

Now, if you want to make this about who's more batshit psychotic...well, that's another poll. ;)

[JackDragna]

23. Bruce was a tough scrapper, though.

He learned how to fight beating up gangers in Hong Kong. Bruce Lee was no pantywaist martial arts instructor with a gut hanging over his belt. He always kept himself in phenomenal shape and could execute every aspect of his martial arts training in the manner they were intended. Lee would destroy anyone without a decent martial arts background.

[Sven77]

3. mma versus boxing

i would say bruce lee would win. usually in octagon fights mixed martial arts wins over just boxing. bruce was fast as lightning(cue the kung-fu song). not to make light of tysons knock-out punches. this is just an opinion. bruce lee died in his prime, mike tyson is past his prime.

[Diego360]

18. Exactly right

Octagon fights, cage fights, no-holds-barred, Ultimate fighting-- whatever you want to call it, over ten years of Mixed Martial Arts fights in the US, Japan, Brazil, Russia etc., have proven that a pure striker has little chance against a fighter who trains both grappling and striking. Just get the early UFCs and watch skinny Royce Gracie submit huge boxers, Kung Fu guys, karate fighters, etc. It is a revelation. Ali vs. Inoki also pitted a great boxer against a cross-trained grappler, but the fight itself is a bore (silly rules prevented Inoki from just taking Ali down and submitting him).

Bruce Lee made his cash doing cool moves onscreen-- but he knew that real fights were brutal, ugly things that almost always went to the ground. Lee was still developing his groundwork when he died-- was he good enough to take Tyson down and submit/choke him out? I think so. But if he chose to stand and strike with Tyson? Tyson by KO.

*edited for clarity

[Commie Pinko Dirtbag]

29. Everybody was Kung Fu fighting! (UH!)

Thanks. A. Lot. Now it's gonna take weeks to shake this off my cerebelum. :crazy:

[DrWeird]

5. In a real fight? Tyson.

Owing to his size. If it was some kind of sporting event where Tyson boxed and Lee did his thing it might be different.

but real fights aren't like either.

[WillyBrandt]

7. I voted Bruce Lee, but I have ambivalent feelings for the reasons

you describe. Every real fight I've seen has been a messy thing.

But I've also seen enough Bruce Lee movies to know he's very strong, quick, resourceful, and clever. If he could hit Tyson in the eyes or something before Tyson could land a killer punch, then who knows...

[DrWeird]

10. Bruce Lee's stuff was stage fighting.

Yes, he was very fast, but 99% of it is crap. He might be able to hold his own in a real fight, but I doubt against Tyson. And Tyson in his prime, despite his size, was damn fast. Real fights don't depend on single punches between the eyes. They almost invariably end up on the ground and being contests of strength, the winner being the guy who eventually gets on top and pounds the other guy repeatedly into the pavement.

[Gyre]

17. Bruce Lee was a HK street fighter long before he made prime time

Check it out if you doubt me. I've read his bio..

Gyre

[underseasurveyor]

6. No contest

Bruce Lee by far. Tyson would never see what hit him.

[derrald]

8. Bruce

Bruce has the 1-inch on his side. He can deliver a more powerful punch than most heavyweights could dream of. and more powerful kicks, headbutts, elbows, knees... Tyson just wouldnt have the agility or endurance to handle it.

[VOX]

9. Hmm. Speed and skill vs. something resembling insane stone.

Tough to call, but I give the edge to Lee on being the more psycholigically flexible of the two.

However, if Lee somehow got into Tyson's wheelhouse, even if for a few seconds, Iron Mike could knock Lee too blocks up on Dream Street.

[bo44]

11. a good big man beats a good little man most of the time

Unless Bruce could land a two fingered eye strike or slash his throat with kali sticks he would get pummeled by Tyson. BTW for you martial arts fans Danny Inosanto is a childhood friend of my father. He was pops' idol. They reunited at a recent martial arts seminar recently in town. Three of the greatest martial artists of all time lived on one block in south Stockton. Danny Inosanto, Leo Giron, and Duke Yoshimura. Danny was a student of both.

[The_Casual_Observer]

13. Danny was my PE teacher at Malaga Cove Jr High Palos Verdes

in 1967 & 1968. He used to talk about Kung Foo all the time and carried around a bamboo "cane" that he would wack you on the thigh with while shouting "don't cheat your body !!!" He really was a very nice man back then at a very nice place.

[bo44]

14. Awesome

That is very old school Filipino behavior. My father really looked up to Danny. Meeting up with him was a very emotional experience for him.

[The_Casual_Observer]

12. Did Bruce Lee have small ears?

That would be an advantage

[jpgray]

15. Sorry, but Tyson would kick Lee's ass

Once Tyson got near enough to grab him, that would be it. Though Tyson has been beaten by little guys before.

[Gyre]

16. Iron Mike would melt like a little girl

Because he wouldn't even see the first 10 kicks or punches that land his big ass on the mat. It would be over that fast.

Gyre

[DS1]

19. Bruce Lee would wear Mike Tyson out, until he was a heap of panting flesh

and then proceed to shut him down pressure point by pressure point.

[jpgray]

20. If they went by Queensbury rules, maybe

But one lunge and grapple and Bruce is done. Tyson was just too strong, fast and talented in his prime.

[DS1]

21. I find that questionable

I concede that one good punch from Tyson would seriously fuck up Lee, but going by Queensbury rules Tyson wouldn't be able to hold onto Lee and pound his lights out. This is assuming that Tyson would actually abide by the rules, of course.

I don't think Tyson could match Lee's outright speed in both landing hits and getting the F out of the way. I think Lee would adapt to the fight much faster and find a weakness to exploit quicker.

[jpgray]

22. That's what I meant

In a standoff fight, where no real grappling or dirty pool is allowed, Bruce Lee would have a definite shot at dancing around Tyson all day and kicking the crap out of him. However I think in a no-holds-barred affair it would be as though Lee were fighting a bear. Sure he's agile, but I think Tyson's sheer size and strength could easily crush Lee if they ever got tangled up. But who knows?

[chenGOD]

24. I had to vote for Tyson...

Although Bruce Lee is a tremendous martial artist, you gotta give it to Mike on size and strength.

If you have ever seen Bob Sapp fight, you'll know what I'm talking about.

[Khephra]

25. Lee would be smart enough to realize

That being a small man you have some advantages over a big man. Yeah, if Lee tried to hit Mike in his trunk then Mike would be able to handle it. But Lee grew up with dirty fights. Being the smaller of the two, it would be easy for him to get inside and hit Mike in one of his weak spots--his legs. Boxers aren't used to leg hits unlike martial artists. Poor Mike would fold after a few serious leg swipes or kicks from Lee. Lee wouldn't even need to get into Mike's striking zone if he stayed low enough.

[EmperorHasNoClothes]

26. Bruce Lee

Tyson would get a few good punches in, almost wiping out Lee, but Lee would come back in the end and deliver the death blow, with the requisite trademark scream and 1,000 yard stare.

Especially if Tyson got anywhere near Lee's movie sister!

[Awsi Dooger]

27. Can I wager a thousand times the national debt?

I'll even surrender 1/5 odds. This reminds me of a friend who insists Chuck Norris is one of the baddest men on the planet, able to kick heavyweight ass even at his current age. Sorry, but this is almost surreal, like the fans who think the best college football team could defeat an NFL doormat.

It wouldn't have to be Tyson in his prime, you could give me the Tyson of today and it's no contest.

[EstimatedProphet]

28. Tyson

The fact is, studying boxing (or any real training where you spar with someone) teaches you one thing that will guarantee winning a fight if you use it well-knowing how to use and keep your space, and keep appropriate distance. Mike Tyson studied this every time he got in the ring. You can't help but stay sharp on keeping distance if you're sparring. Bruce Lee sparred a lot too, but a lot of what he did was movements for the movies, and there's a certain amount of choreography in movies that make them look like Lee was really whupping ass when it was staged.