Roger Federer vs Tiger Woods - Who is the best athlete ever?

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LovingSteam said:
Give me Ali over Tyson. Ali beat Liston and George Foreman. Two boxers who were as powerful and feared as Tyson.
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Foreman was nowhere near as dangerous as Tyson.

Since ending his career he sells grills and tires. Tyson's got a face tatoo and had a biopic made, as well as having cameos in movies.

Clearly Tyson wins here. CLEARLY!
 
ViperVisor said:
Jim Thorpe
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Who's that chick in your avatar...looks like a tennis player.

She any good?

...ya know...
 
RubxQub said:
Foreman was nowhere near as dangerous as Tyson.

Since ending his career he sells grills and tires. Tyson's got a face tatoo and had a biopic made, as well as having cameos in movies.

Clearly Tyson wins here. CLEARLY!
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Well aside from Tyson's face tattoo, perhaps you should hear those boxers who faced Foreman/Liston. Many of them were feared. Ali in his prime vs Tyson? Ali would be way too quick and get in the mind of Tyson which wasn't that difficult to do. If you have Ali go beyond the 4-5th rounds he isn't trained for that, physically nor mentally. Tyson was awesome (I remember meeting him in his prime in Vegas at the Mirage, one of my favorite moments as a kid) but boxing wise give me Ali. Ali was just amazing. One of my favorite athletes ever.

MeandMuhammadAli2.jpg
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LovingSteam said:
Well aside from Tyson's face tattoo, perhaps you should hear those boxers who faced Foreman/Liston. Many of them were feared. Ali in his prime vs Tyson? Ali would be way too quick and get in the mind of Tyson which wasn't that difficult to do. If you have Ali go beyond the 4-5th rounds he isn't trained for that, physically nor mentally. Tyson was awesome (I remember meeting him in his prime in Vegas at the Mirage, one of my favorite moments as a kid) but boxing wise give me Ali.
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Tyson could kick Ali's ass right now.

So there.
 
Roger Federer, though it's close and I'll have to reconsider if Lance Armstrong wins this Tour de France.

Lance Armstrong:

Resting heart rate: 32 bpm
VO2max: 83.8ml/kg/min
Lactate threshold heart-rate: 178 bpm
 
RubxQub said:
Foreman was nowhere near as dangerous as Tyson.

Since ending his career he sells grills and tires. Tyson's got a face tatoo and had a biopic made, as well as having cameos in movies.

Clearly Tyson wins here. CLEARLY!
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Liston and Foreman were also SIGNIFICANTLY slower.

But in all fairness Foreman didn't grow a brain until Ali was out the game. Towards the end he became a much smarter boxer (probably because of Ali). Imagine if he was that way when he was young enough to punch a hole through a couple inches of concrete.
 
RubxQub said:
Foreman was nowhere near as dangerous as Tyson.

Since ending his career he sells grills and tires. Tyson's got a face tatoo and had a biopic made, as well as having cameos in movies.

Clearly Tyson wins here. CLEARLY!
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Young, prime Foreman was basically a bigger Tyson with a much longer reach, albeit slower. The guy obliterated everybody except for Ali, including giving Joe Frazier the two biggest beatdowns of his career.
 
I'm surprised MJ isn't getting a lot of love here. I still think this argument is kinda meh as different sports are hard to compare against... even if we are just talking about athleticism.

But MJ scored 50 as a 38 year old and 40 as a 40 year old... That's enough for me.
 
Zeliard said:
Young, prime Foreman was basically a bigger Tyson with a much longer reach, albeit slower. The guy obliterated everybody except for Ali, including giving Joe Frazier the two biggest beatdowns of his career.
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He was definitely bigger and had a ton of power. I think he still holds the record for highest knockout percentage for a career. But he didn't have anywhere near the hand-speed to power ratio that Tyson had, and Tyson in his prime was practically unhittable with that peek-a-boo style he used early on.
 
SnakeswithLasers said:
wat no barry bonds amirite
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Man....

I think steroids fucked Barry in the long run. Young Barry was a 30HR 30Steal player. He was very very very athletic. Fuck them roids and fuck him for being a attention whore that [allegedly] took em just to get as much attention as Mark and Sammy
 
Kung Fu Jedi said:
He was definitely bigger and had a ton of power. I think he still holds the record for highest knockout percentage for a career. But he didn't have anywhere near the hand-speed to power ratio that Tyson had, and Tyson in his prime was practically unhittable with that peek-a-boo style he used early on.
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Tyson definitely had way better head movement, and overall mobility. His bobbing and weaving is probably what truly set him apart, even moreso than his punching ability. Tyson made people miss and then punished the living fuck out of them. Foreman did have a hell of a chin, though.
 
tenritsu said:
I'm surprised MJ isn't getting a lot of love here. I still think this argument is kinda meh as different sports are hard to compare against... even if we are just talking about athleticism.

But MJ scored 50 as a 38 year old and 40 as a 40 year old... That's enough for me.
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Out of the ones listed? MJ is probably my favorite. I think the issue he has though is that he played a team sport. It's harder to truly showcase yourself in that environment, IMO. Golf, tennis, boxing, etc. are individual sports so it's easier to say distinguish one person's value. Of course we all know MJ was an amazing basketball player, but there's still a question of how much the team around him impacts his performance.

sonarrat said:
Lance Armstrong:

Resting heart rate: 32 bpm
VO2max: 83.8ml/kg/min
Lactate threshold heart-rate: 178 bpm
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Good god.
 
Sol.. said:
Do people honestly think FedEx is the most athletic tennis player? He's REALLY good, but Nadal is pure athlete. They say he has double the rotation on his top spin than the average pro. Not to mention he's fast as balls and can run for days. Thats that soccer in him. Plus he's the only man in the world that can pull of capri pants. On any other dude...it's just gross.
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Thats bollocks. Federer is at least as fit and fast as Nadal, the crazy thing is that he doesn't look like he is sprinting around the court. He seems to almost glide & float around the court where as Nadal pounds around and has wrecked his knees doing so.

Federer very natural style has kept him virtually injury free his whole career.

Again someone mentioned Armstrong, I wouldn't even put him ahead of Miguel Indurain, let alone on the same page of Merkx.
 
navanman said:
Thats bollocks. Federer is at least as fit and fast as Nadal, the crazy thing is that he doesn't look like he is sprinting around the court. He seems to almost glide & float around the court where as Nadal pounds around as has wrecked his knees doing so.

Federer very natural style has kept him virtually injury free his whole career.

Again someone mentioned Armstrong, I wouldn't even put him ahead of Miguel Indurain, let alone on the same page of Merkx.
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FedEx does his thing with skill. He doesn't need to plop around.

But Nadal does, and everything about his game shows his sheer athleticism in ways nobody else has. And thats why i hate him lol.
 
Sol.. said:
FedEx does his thing with skill. He doesn't need to plop around.

But Nadal does, and everything about his game shows his sheer athleticism in ways nobody else has. And thats why i hate him lol.
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Nadal is the most doggedly persistent player on the circuit. No point can go by him. Federer doesn't care if a point gets by him, even if it's a set point, because he knows that you can only play one point at a time and in the end, they're all the same.
 
i agree with the sentiment that golf is more of a game than a sport. doesn't take athletic skill.. not anymore than say, pool or bowling.
 
SanjuroTsubaki said:
I would take Tyson pre-rape over a Ali prime anyday.
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Tyson would never get close enough to Ali to knock him out. Ali was so much faster than any other HW I've ever seen, and it's not even close. Early Tyson was built on quick knockouts, and Ali would've never allowed it. After 4-5 rounds, Tyson would've been so winded that Ali could've snipered him until he decisioned him or knocked him out.

As far as the greatest athlete ever, if you judge by how a particular player dominated his era, NO ONE has mentioned the best. Babe Ruth. Won nearly 100 games as a pitcher, then completely changed the face of baseball with his prodigious power. Gretzky is the closest in terms of completely reimagining his particular sport, but no one supercedes Ruth....
 
Kastro said:
i agree with the sentiment that golf is more of a game than a sport. doesn't take athletic skill.. not anymore than say, pool or bowling.
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that's kind of like saying Kendo isn't a sport
 
tekumseh said:
Tyson would never get close enough to Ali to knock him out. Ali was so much faster than any other HW I've ever seen, and it's not even close. Early Tyson was built on quick knockouts, and Ali would've never allowed it. After 4-5 rounds, Tyson would've been so winded that Ali could've snipered him until he decisioned him or knocked him out.

As far as the greatest athlete ever, if you judge by how a particular player dominated his era, NO ONE has mentioned the best. Babe Ruth. Won nearly 100 games as a pitcher, then completely changed the face of baseball with his prodigious power. Gretzky is the closest in terms of completely reimagining his particular sport, but no one supercedes Ruth....
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Athlete and athletic achievement are very different things.

Average GAFer > Babe Ruth in terms of general athletic ability.
 
RubxQub said:
Athlete and athletic achievement are very different things.

Average GAFer > Babe Ruth in terms of general athletic ability.
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I think now you're confusing physique with athletic ability.
 
Kastro said:
i agree with the sentiment that golf is more of a game than a sport. doesn't take athletic skill.. not anymore than say, pool or bowling.
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Yes, but no, go play pool for 4 hours....then go play golf for 4 hours on a summer day, walk, dont ride, and play from the pro tees.

Its amazingly exhausting, I've done this 2 times with friends for a "lets see how we would be if we were pro's lol's"...when you swing hard 120 times while walking 4 miles in the heat, its rough.


But the answer is neither is the best athlete ever, both are the most dominant to ever play their sports, same with Armstrong....Michael Jordan was dominant, and he could decently hit minor league pitching, and is a good golfer...he wins.

Or any Olympic decathlon champ.
 
tekumseh said:
Tyson would never get close enough to Ali to knock him out. Ali was so much faster than any other HW I've ever seen, and it's not even close. Early Tyson was built on quick knockouts, and Ali would've never allowed it. After 4-5 rounds, Tyson would've been so winded that Ali could've snipered him until he decisioned him or knocked him out.

As far as the greatest athlete ever, if you judge by how a particular player dominated his era, NO ONE has mentioned the best. Babe Ruth. Won nearly 100 games as a pitcher, then completely changed the face of baseball with his prodigious power. Gretzky is the closest in terms of completely reimagining his particular sport, but no one supercedes Ruth....
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I agree completely with Tyson/Ali. Regarding the greatest athlete, it depends if you limit it to one sport or many. Ruth was the greatest baseball player ever but that is it. Same with Gretz and hockey. Jim Brown was the greatest Lacrosse player and arguably the greatest football player, not to mention a great track and fielder and basketball player. Same with Wilt and track and field/ Volleyball/ etc... Look at Jim Thorpe. I will say that nobody dominated their respective sports like Ruth/Gretz/Wilt Chamberlain. But greatest athlete all comes down to how you define athlete.
 
tekumseh said:
Gretzky is the closest in terms of completely reimagining his particular sport, but no one supercedes Ruth....
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I'd dispute that. Wilt Chamberlain was so absurdly dominant that the NBA had to institute several rule changes just to even the playing field.
 
GodofWine said:
Yes, but no, go play pool for 4 hours....then go play golf for 4 hours on a summer day, walk, dont ride, and play from the pro tees.

Its amazingly exhausting, I've done this 2 times with friends for a "lets see how we would be if we were pro's lol's"...when you swing hard 120 times while walking 4 miles in the heat, its rough.


But the answer is neither is the best athlete ever, both are the most dominant to ever play their sports, same with Armstrong....Michael Jordan was dominant, and he could decently hit minor league pitching, and is a good golfer...he wins.

Or any Olympic decathlon champ.
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Except Michael didn't dominate like Wilt. Wilt dominated defensively and offensively, however may will argue he was more focused on his stats than w's. Never the less he dominated basketball like no one before or since. Michael is one of the greatest players but stunk in baseball and I wouldn't say he is a good golfer. He is locked into being a one sport athlete like Ali, Ruth, and Gretz. Jim Brown, Wilt, Jim Thorpe, Bo Jackson, etc... are more than one sport superstars. They are ATHLETE'S in the truest sense of the word.
 
I'm still partial to the great Ed Moses, simply because he was so amazing to watch in action:

_39082926_mosesbody.jpg


Edwin Corley Moses (born August 31, 1955) is an American track and field athlete who won gold medals in the 400-meter hurdles at the 1976 and 1984 Olympics. Between 1977 and 1987, Moses won 107 consecutive finals (122 consecutive races) and set the world record in his event four times.
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Zeliard said:
I'd dispute that. Wilt Chamberlain was so absurdly dominant that the NBA had to institute several rule changes just to even the playing field.
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Yup. 50ppg, 55 rebounds in one game (sick), only center to ever lead the league in assists, never fouled out of a game, for one season played 48.5 minutes per game :lol :lol considering there are 48 minutes in non over time games.
 
LovingSteam said:
Except Michael didn't dominate like Wilt. Wilt dominated defensively and offensively, however may will argue he was more focused on his stats than w's. Never the less he dominated basketball like no one before or since. Michael is one of the greatest players but stunk in baseball and I wouldn't say he is a good golfer.
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Those two sports are more predicated on skill than anything else. Michael Jordan was an insane and very well-rounded athlete, and I have no idea how anyone could think otherwise. Incredible mix of speed, power, stamina, agility and jumping prowess. Athletically, I don't think he had anything you could even begin to call a weakness.
 
Zeliard said:
Those two sports are more predicated on skill than anything else. Michael Jordan was an insane and very well-rounded athlete, and I have no idea how anyone could think otherwise. Incredible mix of speed, power, agility and jumping prowess. Athletically, I don't think he had anything you could even begin to call a weakness.
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True, however he was locked into being a one sport superstar. This is the ding against him. When you have Jim Brown being arguably the greatest player ever in two sports? Thats ridiculous. Wilt Chamberlain being a fantastic track and fielder at 7ft in college and the most dominating basketball player ever? Sick. Jim Thorpe was voted as greatest athlete for first half of the 20th century even in front of Babe Ruth and others. Michael was one of the greatest basketball players ever but his time in baseball showed that his gifts in basketball didn't carry over into another sport.
 
levious said:
I think now you're confusing physique with athletic ability.
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lol the babe had no speed and a good throwing arm, but he could whack some balls out the park.
 
LovingSteam said:
True, however he was locked into being a one sport superstar. This is the ding against him. When you have Jim Brown being arguably the greatest player ever in two sports? Thats ridiculous. Wilt Chamberlain being a fantastic track and fielder at 7ft in college and the most dominating basketball player ever? Sick. Jim Thorpe was voted as greatest athlete for first half of the 20th century even in front of Babe Ruth and others. Michael was one of the greatest basketball players ever but his time in baseball showed that his gifts in basketball didn't carry over into another sport.
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Yes, but a big part of the reason Michael Jordan was so dominant in basketball was very much due to his athleticism. He was simply faster and considerably more explosive than virtually everybody else on the court, even point guards. The whole "Air Jordan" thing came about because the guy spent half his playing time in the 80s flying above people's heads, and he did it when that sort of thing was rare at the time (despite Dr. J's antics).
 
SnakeswithLasers said:
But seriously. Gretzky.



Name someone who achieved in their sport what Gretzky did in his. Jordan and Woods are greats. So is Federer. But there is only one Great One.
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Babe Ruth.

In 142 games, he hit an incredible 54 home runs and drove in 127 RBI. What is amazing is that his home run total was more than that of all other American and National League teams with the exception of the Philadelphia Phillies.
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After the Red Sox sold Babe Ruth to the Yankees in 1920, the Babe single-handedly out-homered the entire Red Sox team for 10 of the next 12 seasons.
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I don't think Gretzky scored more goals than every other team in the league except one did he? He changed the sport of baseball far beyond anything Gretzky or Wilt Chamberlain did . I mean, he won 94 games as a pitcher before he moved to hitting full-time! Curt Shilling has won 216 games in his entire career and Babe Ruth won 94 before going out and hitting 714 home runs.
 
Golfers are athletes now?

btrboyev said:
Same goes for race cars drivers, but even to a lesser degree.
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Depends on the type of racing. NASCAR? I think we've seen enough fat / old stock car drivers winning to agree there. F1? Some of those guys are superhuman. Exteme g loading, extreme heat, reaction, precision, little to no room for error.

The best part about the F1 / NASCAR swap that Montoya and Gordon did for Speed was watching Gordon's head go flying forward the first time he stood on the brakes.
 
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