who was the most ferocious?

[Pravus]

Great call 3rdMan...

I'd go with Liston, Briscoe, Tyson & Duran.

Benny Briscoe! Of course, a mean man in the ring, anyone who fought Briscoe was in for a tough night and if you beat him you had to be really, really good. In any other era he would have been regarded as a truly great Middleweight champion but he ran into Monzon, Valdez and Hagler!

I agree Briscoe was a bad man.. Stopped only once in his career fought the best fighters around.

I agree, and this saved me from having to really think it over myself :P. Note that all four of these men could well have been psychopaths, and one of them, Tyson, is clearly one.

Jack Johnson came to mind immediately for me, as the man took absolute delight in hurting those foolish enough to get in the ring with him, but most of that I believe was a result of the era he lived in - justifiably so. Liston was carved of the same stone and certainly belongs on this list - he absolutely enjoyed beating a man down. Duran was one of the meanest men to ever strap on the gloves and was born with the guns to compliment that mean streak. Briscoe didn't get the name "Bad" Bennie Briscoe for nothin and was one of the most feared men of his era. I believe he's on Ring's top 100 punchers of all time.

Great picks!

[Spicoli]

Jeff Fenech ,no slouch in the ferocious department.

[X]

I'm not sure Johnson took delight in hurting his opponents. He often carried opponents, which is not the usual activity of someone who really enjoys beating them up,...... Johnson liked to humiliate certain opponents, which is different from hurting them - and he only really did this to Burns and Jeffries. He certainly didn't try any funny stuff with Joe Jeanette for example.

As he could seemingly pick and choose which people to humiliate, and because he carried his opponents, I would not classify his as 'ferocious'. He could be, he was a great grreat fighter, but he was too canny to be hell bent on destriction while in the ring.

[Trainer Monkey]

It doesnt seem that way watching his fights now,but Id put Ali in to the mix,the way he'd just decide he was bored with you,and end your night,because there is a ferociousness that allows you to toy with someone like that. Because you know he could have ended it whenever he pleased.
Ann Wolfe definitely has to be in the mix as well,come to think of it so does Valerie Mahfood,on the womans side of it,I dont think either of them have ever understood the word reverse.
Manfreddy has to be in there as well,you allways knew were Angel was going to be,right in front of you throwing punches,Mancini was like that too.