Mike Tyson reveals why he found Jose Ribalta to be his toughest opponent

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Jose Ribalta (left), Mike Tyson (right) [image courtesy of Getty]

In an interview with talkSport, Mike Tyson named Jose Ribalta the toughest opponent he ever faced. In comparison to Tyson's fame, Ribalta was a relatively unknown boxer. The pair met in the ring in 1986, shortly before Tyson became the youngest Heavyweight Champion in history.

Heading into the fight, it was expected that 'Iron' Mike Tyson would easily defeat Jose Ribalta. Though Tyson won their match, it was by no means as easy to win as expected. Ribalta was knocked down three times during their match, but still made it to the final round. Tyson stated:

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"I hit Jose Ribalta with everything, and he took everything and kept coming for more. Ribalta stood toe-to-toe with me. He was very strong in the clinches."

Tyson went on to explain that Jose Ribalta was one of the few fighters to really hurt him in the ring:

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"Ribalta was a game fighter who actually engaged me. I felt nauseous from all Ribalta's body blows, even hours after the fight. I never felt that much general pain again."

Mike Tyson was used to 'short working hours'. This time he was forced to make it to the final round of his match, something nobody had predicted would happen going into that fight. In the last minute of the match, Tyson managed to end things before the final bell could ring.

Tyson posted this recent training video of his to Instagram:

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Mike Tyson praised Gervonta Davis ahead of Davis vs. Romero

Tyson recently explained his interest in seeing Gervonta Davis vs. Rolando Romero. Before Davis won by KO in the sixth round, Tyson predicted a win for 'Tank'.

He stated:

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"Gervonta Davis is built like a brute, a slugger, but he's a master boxer too. He's so versatile in his style of boxing, he could be almost impossible to beat. I'm not saying he is, but it's going to seem that way. He's just another animal. He's highly sophisticated, he uses his height to his advantage, he's built like a slugger but he's actually a master boxer."

It was high praise for the young and accomplished boxer, who improved himself to 27-0, with 25 KOs.

See the full clip here:

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