Looking at who would win in a street fight – Bruce Lee Vs. Mike Tyson

Back in 2017, Mike Tyson was interviewed by MMA pundit Ariel Helwani. Here, Helwani asked whether Bruce Lee could defeat Tyson in a fight. This was Tyson’s response, “If Bruce Lee could really beat me in a fight, I would really, um, think, ‘f**k this is an interesting world’. Because that should not happen.” In fairness, Tyson has also been very complimentary towards Bruce Lee over the years as well.

So, even though Tyson seems incredibly confident that he would have been the winner of the fight – we shall look at what could have been. Obviously, both are two martial arts legends in two very different fields. However, there are also some harsh realities that we’ll have to look at whilst examining who would win between Bruce Lee and Mike Tyson.

Mike Tyson Vs. Bruce Lee

Mike Tyson far outweighs Bruce Lee

Mike Tyson roughly walks around weighing 100KG and is 5’8 feet tall, whilst Bruce Lee used to weigh around 68KG and was 5’7 feet tall. Although Mike Tyson was a heavyweight – he was surprisingly small for his weight class. Typically, most boxers in this weight class are far taller than Tyson. If you watch his fights, you’ll often see that Tyson was the smaller boxer of the two.

Arguably, this acted as an advantage for Tyson as it meant that pound for pound, he weighed more than his taller opponents. Obviously, any man that is 5’8 feet and weighs 100KG is incredibly strong and powerful for their size. What’s even scarier is that Iron Mike also moved like a lightweight. Despite his heavyweight stature, he was incredibly quick.

In comparison, Bruce Lee weighed a mere 68KG. This would mean that if he were to fight Tyson, he’d be giving up over 20KG in weight. As seen, the two are roughly the same size so neither fighter would be at a disadvantage in that area. However, it goes without saying that Bruce Lee would be severely disadvantaged in the weight department.

If you’ve ever trained a martial art or been in a fight, you’ll respect how important weight and size are. Despite traditional martial arts preaching about technique over size, this is only true to a point. When someone weighs over 20KG more than you, it becomes a real game changer. In this area, there is only one winner – Mike Tyson.

Bruce Lee trained for street fighting, Tyson didn’t

Wing Chun and Jeet Kune Do in particular were developed for street fights. For example, JKD teaches dirty moves such as eye gouging, groin strikes, and oblique kicks. All of these can seriously maim your opponent, whereas Tyson’s boxing was focused on a sporting environment more than the streets. In this sense, Tyson would be at a disadvantage as Bruce Lee would know some dirty tricks that may throw Tyson off guard.

Still, Tyson is no stranger to fighting dirty either. He did infamously bite Evander Holyfield’s ear so it’s not like he’d be above using sly moves. Also, Tyson also grew up street fighting in Brooklyn, New York. In other words, his martial art may be cleaner than the likes of Jeet Kune Do but he certainly knows how to street fight.

Boxing beats Wing Chun

One of the main weaknesses of Wing Chun is the inability to defend against attacks from the outside. If you study Wing Chun, many of its trapping defenses take place on the inside. In other words, Wing Chun is useful against countering jabs and uppercuts down the middle.

However, it offers little in the way of defending against hooks. As Tyson could throw a strong hook, this would be a big problem for Bruce Lee. With all his expertise, this would be an issue that Lee may not be prepared for.

Bruce Lee was quicker than Tyson

Whilst Mike Tyson would have the greater power, Bruce Lee would have been much quicker than Iron Mike. The reason for this is that Bruce Lee weighed less 20KG less than Tyson. Basically, the lighter you are, the quicker you are. This is perhaps the only advantage that weighing less brings when it comes to a fight.

There is footage online of Bruce Lee’s lightning speed – both with his footwork and his hands. So, if he managed to dodge Tyson’s punches by using his agility, then Bruce Lee may have a chance. Remember, in a street fight – there’s no boxing ring. This would also benefit Bruce Lee due to his speed. This would mean that it would be easier for Bruce Lee to run and evade Tyson’s heavy hits, without being bullied into a corner.

Mike Tyson could easily knock out Bruce Lee

Going back to the size advantage, this would mean that Mike Tyson could easily knock out Bruce Lee with a single punch. Even if he was losing the fight, the ability to knockout your opponent with a single punch will always give you a significant advantage.

On the contrary, the reality is that Bruce Lee would struggle to knockout Mike Tyson with a single punch. Undoubtedly, Lee could seriously hurt Tyson if he managed to land blows. However, knocking out Tyson would be very difficult. This is due to his infamously thick neck which would protect him from hard punches. At the same time, being hit in the face by a 100KG Mike Tyson would almost instantly result in a loss for a 68KG Bruce Lee.

On a similar note, Tyson would also dominate in grappling exchanges. Despite not being a famous grappler, there is some clinch work used in boxing. If Tyson could close the distance and hug Bruce Lee, his brute strength could effectively smother Bruce Lee into submission.

Both have lost fights

Whilst we all know about Mike Tyson’s boxing record, less is typically known about Bruce Lee’s fight record. Tyson retired from boxing with an impressive 44 wins and 6 losses. This means that despite his impressive reputation, Tyson was still beatable.

From a psychological perspective, this would give Bruce Lee some home and shows that Tyson did have some weak spots. Remember, Bruce Lee would also be allowed to throw kicks and other attacks which would only advantage him as well.

However, it is widely acknowledged that Bruce Lee lost fights as well. For instance, it’s widely regarded that he lost on set to Gene LeBell, a skilled Judoka who managed to out-grapple Bruce Lee and choke him. Although the two were very respectful towards each other, it is commonly accepted that Bruce Lee could not beat the American.

Furthermore, he supposedly also lost to a Chinese martial artist named Wong Jack Man. This is a controversial story with people from either side saying that Lee and Jack Man won. Sadly, we’ll never know how this one played out. Just remember, Bruce Lee was a martial artist of his time. Unlike the modern era, records weren’t recorded and many fights would go unregistered. So, there will always be an element of mystery regarding his fighting skills and record.

Who is more experienced?

Let’s imagine Bruce Lee survived and both were the same age. You may wonder who would be the more experienced of the two. The answer is no one. Mike Tyson began training boxing aged 13 years old. Bruce Lee also started training martial arts aged 13 years old. As a result, they would have equal experience when it comes to training in their selected disciplines.

Both were also known to live in the gym and push their bodies to their respected limits. In brief, it’s not like either fighter would be significantly more experienced compared to the other. Undoubtedly experience counts when fighting – but no one would win in this area.

Conclusion – who wins between Bruce Lee and Mike Tyson?

With all of the above counted for, we have to conclude by saying that Mike Tyson would be the victor against Bruce Lee. This may be saddening for Bruce Lee fans to hear. However, the size difference cannot be ignored. In most combat sports, there are weight categories for a reason. This is because weight is probably the biggest factor when it comes to winning fights. Of course, if Mike Tyson was completely untrained then he would lose. However, the fact isn’t. Not only is he bigger than Bruce Lee but he was incredibly technical too. At the same time, we should pay respect to Bruce Lee. He was undeniably a great martial artist and a real legend. Obviously, he could beat most martial artists in a fight as well, especially against those his own size.

This brings us to our final point. Who would win if the pair were both 68KG. This question is far more complicated and honestly, there’s no correct answer. In other words, without his significant weight advantage, the playing field would be far more equal and would give Bruce Lee a real chance of victory. At the same time, we can’t ignore the facts and the reality is that Mike Tyson was not 68KG. For the record, we think that Mike Tyson would take Bruce Lee in a street fight.

Want to learn more about Bruce Lee’s fighting style? Check out his Jeet Kune Do book.