Mike Tyson unified the WBA, WBC, and IBF heavyweight championships against Tony Tucker to become the undisputed heavyweight champion. Billed as The Ultimate, it was a professional boxing match contested on August 1, 1987. Background This was the final match in the Heavyweight World Series, a tournament produced by HBO and Don King Productions to crown an undisputed heavyweight champion. The tournament began in 1986, when the champions were Pinklon Thomas (WBC), Tony Tubbs (WBA), and Michael Spinks (IBF). By the end of the year, Tyson had claimed two of the three titles. He knocked out Trevor Berbick, who had beaten Thomas, for the WBC belt, then captured the WBA title, which had passed from Tubbs to Tim Witherspoon and then to James “Bonecrusher” Smith before Tyson won it. Tucker earned his shot after Spinks, the IBF champion, chose to fight Gerry Cooney instead of his mandatory challenger. The IBF stripped Spinks, though he remained the lineal champion. A bout between Tucker and Buster Douglas was set for May 30, 1987 to decide the vacant IBF title, with the winner to face the winner of Tyson vs Pinklon Thomas for all three belts. Tucker stopped Douglas in the 10th round, while Tyson knocked out Thomas in the 6th, setting up the unification fight just nine weeks later. The fight Tucker proved to be one of Tyson’s toughest early opponents. He came out strong in round one, landing a sharp left hook, and won rounds 1 and 3 on the scorecards. Tyson found his rhythm in the middle rounds, landing heavy shots in rounds 4 through 7 and forcing Tucker to hold or evade. In the final rounds, Tucker taunted Tyson, winding up his right glove, shuffling his feet, and dropping his hands. Tyson won by unanimous decision, with scores of 119–111, 118–113, and 116–112, becoming the first undisputed heavyweight champion since Leon Spinks in 1978, though not recognized as lineal champion by The Ring. Aftermath Michael Spinks attended the Tyson–Tucker fight, fueling speculation about a future clash. Tyson went on to knock out Tyrell Biggs, Larry Holmes, and Tony Tubbs before facing Spinks in June 1988, stopping him in 91 seconds to claim the lineal title. Tucker rebounded from his first career loss with 14 straight wins, earning a title shot against Lennox Lewis, which he lost by unanimous decision. Tucker later revealed he broke his right hand early in the Tyson fight after injuring it in sparring, saying: “I hit him with a right uppercut early and my hand just shattered. It was the worst pain ever. I still went on though, that’s why I did all those antics and everything.

08/01/1987 - WBA – WBC – IBF – The Ring

Mike Tyson unified the WBA, WBC, and IBF heavyweight championships against Tony Tucker to become the undisputed heavyweight champion. Billed as The Ultimate, it was a professional boxing match contested on August 1, 1987.

Background
This was the final match in the Heavyweight World Series, a tournament produced by HBO and Don King Productions to crown an undisputed heavyweight champion. The tournament began in 1986, when the champions were Pinklon Thomas (WBC), Tony Tubbs (WBA), and Michael Spinks (IBF). By the end of the year, Tyson had claimed two of the three titles. He knocked out Trevor Berbick, who had beaten Thomas, for the WBC belt, then captured the WBA title, which had passed from Tubbs to Tim Witherspoon and then to James “Bonecrusher” Smith before Tyson won it.

Tucker earned his shot after Spinks, the IBF champion, chose to fight Gerry Cooney instead of his mandatory challenger. The IBF stripped Spinks, though he remained the lineal champion. A bout between Tucker and Buster Douglas was set for May 30, 1987 to decide the vacant IBF title, with the winner to face the winner of Tyson vs Pinklon Thomas for all three belts. Tucker stopped Douglas in the 10th round, while Tyson knocked out Thomas in the 6th, setting up the unification fight just nine weeks later.

The fight
Tucker proved to be one of Tyson’s toughest early opponents. He came out strong in round one, landing a sharp left hook, and won rounds 1 and 3 on the scorecards. Tyson found his rhythm in the middle rounds, landing heavy shots in rounds 4 through 7 and forcing Tucker to hold or evade. In the final rounds, Tucker taunted Tyson, winding up his right glove, shuffling his feet, and dropping his hands. Tyson won by unanimous decision, with scores of 119–111, 118–113, and 116–112, becoming the first undisputed heavyweight champion since Leon Spinks in 1978, though not recognized as lineal champion by The Ring.

Aftermath
Michael Spinks attended the Tyson–Tucker fight, fueling speculation about a future clash. Tyson went on to knock out Tyrell Biggs, Larry Holmes, and Tony Tubbs before facing Spinks in June 1988, stopping him in 91 seconds to claim the lineal title. Tucker rebounded from his first career loss with 14 straight wins, earning a title shot against Lennox Lewis, which he lost by unanimous decision. Tucker later revealed he broke his right hand early in the Tyson fight after injuring it in sparring, saying: “I hit him with a right uppercut early and my hand just shattered. It was the worst pain ever. I still went on though, that’s why I did all those antics and everything.