Rate Their Power

[New England]

Questions like this are always difficult because there simply isn't a linear scale of power;everyone generates power in a slightly different way, from different body mechanics and techniques. And certain fighters can be more resilient against certain shots than others. Someone's best shot might turn fighter A's legs to jelly but have comparatively little effect on fighter B, who in turn might get dropped by a fighter who couldn't dent fighter A etc etc.

In terms of raw explosive power I've got to rank Tua near the top. His shots routinely had a devastating effect on normally durable fighters, and he could end fights in seconds regardless of how late into the fight it was. He also had very fast hands and excellent technique to go with that power. If he had faster feet and a better boxing brain then I don't think anyone would have any question about ranking him near the top.

Tyson's either an overrated or an underrated puncher depending on who you ask. His one hit power I think was exceptional, and he has the knockouts to prove it. His power generating mechanisms and technique were similar to Tua's, though I have to rate him below Tua for what I perceive in him of having slightly less physical power. His other traits made him a more devastating fighter however, but that's not the question.

Wlad and Lennox both have similar power I think. Lennox was the heavier handed, and tended to put his full weight into shots a lot more, resulting in some truly sickeing knockouts (Rahman II anyone?), whilst Wlad tends to be more reticent in unleashing his full power, preferring to hang back and shoot sharp shots down the pipe... which still often ends in a knockout. Were they both more aggressive (a futile thought given how large they are) they'd have close to 100% KO ratios. As it stands, very few fighters in history can boast the sorts of knockouts these two have had.

Frazier's left was a beautiful shot, discombobulating and dangerous at any stage of the fight. I rank Frazier extremely highly as a puncher.

Bowe's a good but not exceptional puncher. He used his weight and height to get power into shots, in the same way that Lennox and Wlad did, but his often sloppy technique and slight lack of speed forces me to rank him below them. Were he smaller, I doubt anyone would give him a second thought at all.

Ron Lyle is an interesting case. He's one of only a handful of men to seriously hurt Foreman and was dropping him with single shots, but aside from that there's really not much to go on. The Shavers's win is nice, but Shavers wasn't the most durable of opponents. I'd probably rank him below the above fighters (minus perhaps Bowe) but not by much. Hard to judge.

Liston: heavy handed but ponderous puncher, similar to Foreman. Could rattle your cage with just about any shot. Obviously possessing great physical strength and solidity, but his lack of speed and technique hurts him.

Rocky: great power for his size.

Dempsey: hard to rate his power given how little I've seen of him compared to the others. Also fought with different size gloves, which have to be factored in there. I wouldn't rate him anywhere near the others, based on what I've seen, however.

this is a very solid post


all i'll add to it is that i think you're maybe underrating liston a touch


to make sure i was giving everybody a fair shake at this i recently went back to some liston fights i have in my collection and was taken back at how viscous his punches were, how they made their way through the target, and how they looked effortless. It was almost like he always had a harder one in the holster, the way saad muhammad and arguello and some of the other true leverage punchers used to operate


as far as upper bodies go, i wouldn't trade liston's for anybody in the sport. that dude's arms were made to box.


in my post i listed sonny a bit lower than i now believe he deserves, after rewatching some of his fights and then going over the finishes in detail

i'll put his power on par with lewis, even given the disparity in size



according to emanuel steward, and this can obviously be taken for what its worth as steward does his best to promote fights going in to them, wladimir is the hardest puncher he's ever worked with one punch with either hand.

[SCtrojansbaby]

1.Tyson
2.Liston
3.Wlad
4.Tua

[nomadman]

all i'll add to it is that i think you're maybe underrating liston a touch

to make sure i was giving everybody a fair shake at this i recently went back to some liston fights i have in my collection and was taken back at how viscous his punches were, how they made their way through the target, and how they looked effortless. It was almost like he always had a harder one in the holster, the way saad muhammad and arguello and some of the other true leverage punchers used to operate

as far as upper bodies go, i wouldn't trade liston's for anybody in the sport. that dude's arms were made to box.

in my post i listed sonny a bit lower than i now believe he deserves, after rewatching some of his fights and then going over the finishes in detail

i'll put his power on par with lewis, even given the disparity in size

Just to let you know, that post wasn't in any particular order, it was just an analysis of each fighter's power and what I think of it. I think Liston had similar punching power to Foreman, and his shots certainly had a similar effect on fighters; if you got repeatedly hit by him you were going down and not getting back up. But both Foreman and Liston weren't what I call clean one hit knockout punchers. You rarely ever saw them knocking guys out with one shot, it was more of a general battering into unconsciousness. Someone like Tua or Tyson could turn you lights off in an instant, as could Lennox and Wlad to a lesser degree. Both Foreman and Liston broke you down with pounding sledgehammer blows delivered repeatedly to the body and head, devastating in their way, but if we're judging raw one-hit knockout power I've got to rank old Sonny boy lower in the list.

according to emanuel steward, and this can obviously be taken for what its worth as steward does his best to promote fights going in to them, wladimir is the hardest puncher he's ever worked with one punch with either hand.

I tend to be a little skeptical regarding what fighters, referees, journalist and especially trainers have to say about a fighter's power, but Wlad certainly has the sort of knockouts to back up Manny Steward's words. I actually think Wlad could be one of the hardest punchers in boxing histort if he only put his weight into shots more, but that would in turn leave him more vulnerable and we all know that's the last thing he ever wants to do again. As it stands he's merely an exceptional puncher. Not bad really.

[The Surgeon]

Tyson and Tua out in the lead with 4 votes each as the premier puncher of the group

[young_robbed]

Questions like this are always difficult because there simply isn't a linear scale of power;everyone generates power in a slightly different way, from different body mechanics and techniques. And certain fighters can be more resilient against certain shots than others. Someone's best shot might turn fighter A's legs to jelly but have comparatively little effect on fighter B, who in turn might get dropped by a fighter who couldn't dent fighter A etc etc.

In terms of raw explosive power I've got to rank Tua near the top. His shots routinely had a devastating effect on normally durable fighters, and he could end fights in seconds regardless of how late into the fight it was. He also had very fast hands and excellent technique to go with that power. If he had faster feet and a better boxing brain then I don't think anyone would have any question about ranking him near the top.

Tyson's either an overrated or an underrated puncher depending on who you ask. His one hit power I think was exceptional, and he has the knockouts to prove it. His power generating mechanisms and technique were similar to Tua's, though I have to rate him below Tua for what I perceive in him of having slightly less physical power. His other traits made him a more devastating fighter however, but that's not the question.

Wlad and Lennox both have similar power I think. Lennox was the heavier handed, and tended to put his full weight into shots a lot more, resulting in some truly sickeing knockouts (Rahman II anyone?), whilst Wlad tends to be more reticent in unleashing his full power, preferring to hang back and shoot sharp shots down the pipe... which still often ends in a knockout. Were they both more aggressive (a futile thought given how large they are) they'd have close to 100% KO ratios. As it stands, very few fighters in history can boast the sorts of knockouts these two have had.

Frazier's left was a beautiful shot, discombobulating and dangerous at any stage of the fight. I rank Frazier extremely highly as a puncher.

Bowe's a good but not exceptional puncher. He used his weight and height to get power into shots, in the same way that Lennox and Wlad did, but his often sloppy technique and slight lack of speed forces me to rank him below them. Were he smaller, I doubt anyone would give him a second thought at all.

Ron Lyle is an interesting case. He's one of only a handful of men to seriously hurt Foreman and was dropping him with single shots, but aside from that there's really not much to go on. The Shavers's win is nice, but Shavers wasn't the most durable of opponents. I'd probably rank him below the above fighters (minus perhaps Bowe) but not by much. Hard to judge.

Liston: heavy handed but ponderous puncher, similar to Foreman. Could rattle your cage with just about any shot. Obviously possessing great physical strength and solidity, but his lack of speed and technique hurts him.

Rocky: great power for his size.

Dempsey: hard to rate his power given how little I've seen of him compared to the others. Also fought with different size gloves, which have to be factored in there. I wouldn't rate him anywhere near the others, based on what I've seen, however.

Liston was certainly a snappier and better technical puncher then Foreman and they both had similar power id say liston had better power based on that

[Devroy Jones]

Top 10 Punchers IMO

1. George Foreman
2. Joe Louis
3. Max Baer
4. Rocky Marciano
5. Mike Tyson
6. Bob Fitzsimmons
7. Earnie Shavers
8. Sonny Liston
9. Jack Dempsey
10. Joe Frazier (just for that left hook)