Best peak: Mike Tyson vs Waqar Younis vs Ronaldo Nazario

[PlayerComparisons]

Peak Waqar was insane

 

[sayon basak]

Sounds like a Gen Z person trying to own the term “aura” here. Its been widespread and popular since you were in the crib

Duh.

 

[Coronis]

Fun fact: Reading this thread and a woman with a Mike Tyson shirt walked in my shop. So my vote’s obvious.

 

[DrWolverine]

Superman is the yardstick against whom all superheroes are compared.

Similarly, Peak Mike Tyson has become a part of pop culture and it is the yardstick against whom other badasses and fighters are compared.

 

[Fuller Pilch]

Peak Tiger, peak Jonah, and peak Usain were much better than all 3

First of all who?

Jonah Lomu. His peak was the most exciting from any sports star I've ever seen. Heaps of YouTube clips

 

[Coronis]

Jonah Lomu. His peak was the most exciting from any sports star I've ever seen. Heaps of YouTube clips

Feel like Jordan deserves a mention here too.

Curry is/was the most exciting bball player I’ve watched live tho

 

[shortpitched713]

Jonah Lomu. His peak was the most exciting from any sports star I've ever seen. Heaps of YouTube clips

Yeah, looks an incredibly powerful runner. Quick, but not the quickest in the world, I guess these days I'm used to seeing wingers so fast that if you don't get them in the first two steps there's not a snowballs chance in hell anyone is catching them. But yeah, I could definitely see him being that exciting to watch.

 

[shortpitched713]

I'm not 37, and that term was popularized by millenials when talking about 2000s anime.

You school em up unc!

 

[shortpitched713]

Feel like Jordan deserves a mention here too.

Curry is/was the most exciting bball player I’ve watched live tho

Peak Jordan and peak Curry have a lot more similarity than people seem to want to talk about. Yes it was two point shots for MJ, but they both moved so well both with and without the ball, it was a glorious orchestra of unstoppable offensive excellence in both cases.

 

[Migara]

Peak Jahangir Khan says hi

 

[Thala_0710]

The current peak from Armand Duplantis is looking right up there

 

[shortpitched713]

But yeah Jordan (or Maradonna either could fit) were not a flash in the pan. These 3 guys were all guys who burst onto the scene, and then declined into legendary/nostalgic status even within the time of their careers, so have a bit of a bittersweet tinge to their careers (Tyson a lot of other emotions too, disappointment, anger due to his self inflicted troubles).

Maradonna kind of fits this thread (certainly the right timeframe), as I guess Maradonna was in a way chasing his peak point he showed the world in 86 World cup, and form he had shown earlier in career, but he was still a force domestically and internationally even into the early 90s, so not quite int he same realm.

 

[Coronis]

Peak Jahangir Khan says hi

Yeah he was drawing big crowds in squash. Very exciting

 

[capt_Luffy]

Peak Bobby Fischer was a different beast

 

[shortpitched713]

Part of the mystique of these guys is also the time period.

Even out of Pakistani bowlers, Imran had an objectively better career and was a greater bowler overall, but I would hazard there was much less availability for people to watch his televised matches in Pakistan, and his peak was as early as black and white TV Era. It likely didn't capture as many minds (with exception of 92 World Cup, by which time he wasn't really a bowler) as Waqar's heyday, where so many more matches were seen by more people, I would hazard.

Tyson is a similar story I would say, in reference to Ali. Ali was an absolute phenomenon and was box office during 60s and 70s, but for pure number of eyeballs per fight, I would hazard late 80s, early 90s Tyson likely had more.

It's an era thing, and obviously no fault of the older generation stars, but worth mentioning.

 

[shortpitched713]

Cursory searches on the matter show a lot, lot more views for Ali than Tyson, due to the latter's matches being PPV. It's actually crazy (maybe even incorrect?) , but I'm seeing 1 billion viewers for Ali fights, like wtf?

 

[Coronis]

Cursory searches on the matter show a lot, lot more views for Ali than Tyson, due to the latter's matches being PPV. It's actually crazy (maybe even incorrect?) , but I'm seeing 1 billion viewers for Ali fights, like wtf?

Pretty sure Ali’s matches were also PPV. Pretty sure his popularity was the reason PPV succeeded.

 

[Coronis]

Pretty sure Ali’s matches were also PPV. Pretty sure his popularity was the reason PPV succeeded.

Checking this, it was a form of PPV, where you’d pay for tickets to a theatre or such where the event would be broadcast. iirc the record sales for those bouts (Rumble in the Jungle, Thrilla in Manilla) haven’t been approached.

 

[shortpitched713]

Yeah, but there were only 4 billion people on the world at that time. Did dudes bring their whole family and/or buy a ticket for their dog and donkey too? 1 billion seems unbelievable.

 

[Coronis]

Yeah, but there were only 4 billion people on the world at that time. Did dudes bring their whole family and/or buy a ticket for their dog and donkey too? 1 billion seems unbelievable.

Not sure where you’re getting 1 billion. Sources are showing me between 50-100 million sales for those two bouts.