Six degrees of separation is a theory that everyone in the world is separated by no more than six social connections.
In other words, you know someone who knows someone who knows someone who knows someone who knows someone who knows Queen Elizabeth. Or so the concept goes.
We’re borrowing the six degrees concept – well, sort of loosely – to connect fighters from the past to their more contemporary counterparts in our new occasional feature, “Degrees of Separation.”
Example: Let’s connect Julio Cesar Chavez Sr. to Julio Cesar Chavez Jr. Super easy; we did it in two steps. Senior fought Grover Wiley, who fought Junior.
In this installment of the Boxing Junkie feature, we decided to link Mike Tyson — who is set for a comeback against Roy Jones Jr. on Nov. 28 — and a fighter he has always admired, the legendary Jack Dempsey.
Tyson and Dempsey had a lot in common in the ring. They were both ferocious, powerful knockout machines who captured the imagination of fans worldwide and have evolved into legends.
Even their records were similar. Dempsey finished 54-6-8, Tyson 50-6. And, believe it or not, they both had 44 knockouts.
The question for the purposes of this feature: Could we link them by opponents even though Tyson retired 78 years after Dempsey did? Turns out we could. And, remarkably, it took only seven steps.
Check it out:
Jack Dempsey fought …
Jack Sharkey, who fought …
Joe Louis, who fought …
Rocky Marciano, who fought …
Archie Moore, who fought …
Muhammad Ali, who fought …
Larry Holmes, who fought …
Mike Tyson
For fun, we wanted to know how many steps it would take to connect Jones with Dempsey. We did it in nine. Have a look:
Jack Dempsey fought …
Jack Sharkey, who fought …
Joe Louis, who fought …
Rocky Marciano, who fought …
Archie Moore, who fought …
Muhammad Ali, who fought …
Larry Holmes, who fought …
Evander Holyfield, who fought …
James Toney, who fought …
Roy Jones Jr.
Could you do it in fewer steps? Let us know via Twitter or Facebook. Or you can contact me on Twitter. And please follow us!
Read more:
Degrees of separation: Connecting John L. Sullivan to Deontay Wilder
Degrees of Separation: Linking Filipino greats Flash Elorde, Manny Pacquiao
Degrees of Separation: Linking Japanese greats Fighting Harada and Naoya Inoue
Degrees of Separation: Linking Tyson Fury to first U.K.-born heavyweight champ
Degrees of Separation: Connecting Canelo Alvarez with Mexican legends
Degrees of Separation: Linking the Mayweathers
Degrees of Separation: Linking Manny Pacquiao to Pancho Villa