Reasons

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who was ranked in the top ten by two of the major sanctioning bodies

 

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Tyson's opponent was the unranked Henry Tillman

 

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Tillman was best known for beating Tyson twice in the 1984 Olympic trials.

 

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At this time, Evander Holyfield was getting ready for his sixth

 

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fight as a heavyweight against Seamus McDonagh on June 1

 

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in Atlantic City.

 

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On the day of the Holyfield-McDonagh fight

 

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I went to grab something to eat

 

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While we were eating, Benton said, "Bobby, what's up with Foreman and Tyson, how come they're not fighting each other on the 16th? Isn't that the fight that King was trying to make?" He said, " Georgie,You'll never believe this but, Fuckin' Tyson is scared shitless of Foreman and wants no part of him. I was there when Don was trying to make the fight. He was telling Tyson that Foreman represented huge money, plus he was old and slow and would be no problem. Tyson got up and screamed at King saying, 'I'm not fightin' that Fuckin' animal, if you love the motherfucker so much, you fight him!'"

 

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Goodman stated that Tyson said Foreman was much better than people thought

 

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and was a dangerous fight for any of the top heavyweights

 

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Goodman proceeded to explain how Tyson was calling Foreman a big con man

 

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and explained that the grandpop act was just a front

 

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He said Tyson saw Foreman as trying to set up the boxing world into thinking he was a pushover, knowing that he really wasn't.

 

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Tyson said Foreman was a wolf in sheep's clothing.

 

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Goodman continued to say that after seeing Tyson's response to King trying to push him into a fight with Foreman

 

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he had no doubt that Tyson had fear of Foreman.

 

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He also said that from that point on, he felt that if Foreman and Tyson ever fought, Foreman would knock Tyson out!

 

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Throughout the lunch Goodman, Duva, Benton, and myself

 

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shared stories and thoughts on the fight game. Out of the

 

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blue Goodman said, "Oh I remember why else Tyson wanted

 

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no parts of Foreman. He said that King had found out from

 

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Steve Lott that Tyson and Cus D'Amato used to watch the

 

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Frazier-Foreman fight over and over." He continued saying

 

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that Tyson loved that fight because he was awed by

 

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Foreman's power and Frazier's toughness and how he kept

 

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getting up after every knockdown. He also said that Lott told

 

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against Foreman if you're short and fight a swarming

 

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attacking style like Marciano or Frazier," never figuring that

 

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Foreman could be a possible Tyson opponent down the road.