Mike Tyson was the hardest puncher ever?

[El Kabong]

Nobody is saying Shavers is a better boxer than Tyson but yes he was a harder puncher...the bomb he landed on Holmes was insane and that Larry got up from it was even more crazy.

[WelshDevilRob]

Floyd Paterson in the Top 10 hardest punchers in Heavyweight history? That shows a shocking lack of knowledge of heavyweight history. Never read anything like it.

[CGM]

Nobody is saying Shavers is a better boxer than Tyson but yes he was a harder puncher...the bomb he landed on Holmes was insane and that Larry got up from it was even more crazy.

Yeah, there's a quote you can probably find on the net where Holmes says he still sees stars from that Shavers punch. Holmes had very good recuperative powers, as a champ he was staggered a few times, but always came back strong.

[Mr140]

Man i am so sick of people saying how great a puncher Tyson was and how he was better then Foreman and all that crap just dont get it. Tyson knocked out old men and bums Foreman knocked out Atg and in quicker fashion sometimes all you got to do is look who they knocked out. And you while see by far that Foreman was knocking out the better men.

[Alan McDougall]

Man i am so sick of people saying how great a puncher Tyson was and how he was better then Foreman and all that crap just dont get it. Tyson knocked out old men and bums Foreman knocked out Atg and in quicker fashion sometimes all you got to do is look who they knocked out. And you while see by far that Foreman was knocking out the better men.

You obviously did not fight him , if you had then you would have become fatally sick.

Old men and bums,? Three world heavy weight champs bums? Larry Holmes a bum?

peace

[El Kabong]

Tyson, much like Larry Holmes, didn't have many rivalries in his prime. He fought Holyfield and Lewis when he was past his best. Frank Bruno and Donovan Rudduck are the only guys I think had a good kind of even rivalry with Tyson....and it's kind of disappointing because those guys weren't all-time greats. Tyson missed out on proving himself vs some really interesting competition as well: Bowe, Briggs, Morrison, Moorer, and Foreman.

And because of Tyson's style and attitude he gets the Ali and Marciano treatment, he's either vastly overrated or underrated.

[Majesty]

Didn't Larry Holmes as an old man beat Ray Mercer?

[Mr140]

I called Larry old man which he was at 38 also lets not forget he not fougth in some time and had 14 days to train so i say he was past it. As for those champions you are talking about are you speaking about the title holders he beat or the real champions that beat him just to ask because during his time as champ i dont remember him beating a great champion in his prime. Tyson was in one of the weakest era of boxing when he was a champ only one weaker was Rocky but atleast he beat everyone he fought though. I just think Tyson power was not the greatest ever he knocked out alot bums but when fought Douglas and Holyfeild he him self tasted the canvas i just think because everytime he went into a big fight he lost and his power did not seem a factor in those fights like Foreman did in some of his fights vs atg but that just a thought.

[The Congressman]

Sam Peters.

[BoomBoom]

Its very likely that the hardest puncher of all time never even was world ranked due to lack of skill or a bad chin. As far as known fighters, I would say based on what his opponents have said and his brutal kos, Shavers hit the hardest. Liston, Schmeling, Foreman, all hard punchers. Id say Tyson is up definately up there.

[Dizaster]

And hardest puncher is so hard to measure... Punch hardness would be to set up a machine like on Rocky, and have all the heavyweights hit it in their prime, and the highest reading would be the hardest punch....

I think in terms of boxing though, you could look at it in a much better way..

Who was the most devastating puncher? Who was the most capable of knocking someone out? Who translated their power into effective punching most often?

A guy could stand on a machine and swing and put up big numbers, but we can't tell what numbers each would have by watching fights.... You can however see who best used their power...

And Tyson was definitely up there in that respect. He made his punches count, and used what power he had to do the most damage... Some fighters have great power, but they'll be predictable with constant left hooks, and they aren't hugely effective. Even though they may have more power than other fighters...
Like Roy Jones probably didn't have the hardest punch on a measurement machine, but you add up the unpredictability of where the punch would come from, the lack of defense his opponent could use on it, and the times he would catch them with his hard rights - It resulted in a much more devastating punch that a fighter who swang away with all their power and didn't use it to as good effect..

That's my thoughts on the whole subject anyway when who has the "hardest" punch comes up...

[johnsebastianmiran]

In my own opinion based on the fighters I have seen in the ring and on television, 1. Big George was a clubbing mean spirited fighter the first time around. The second time around he would club you with kindness. 2.Ernie Shavers was a puncher that hurt you before the bell rang and he didn't have to leave the dressing room. He had poor stamina until late in his career. A fighter had to sweat the first two rounds after getting hit by his jab.
3. Rocky Marciano 4. Jack Dempsey were living nightmares that never stopped coming and Rocky did not weigh as much as Mike but he took you apart one punch at a time. Jack was more like Mike and he weighed less and hit harder. 5.Sonny Liston punished you because you showed up and his jab was harder than most boxer's Sunday punch. 6. Joe Frazier and Mike Tyson were similar except that while bludgeoning you, Joe had the stamina to beat the crap out of you for days and every punch was a combination. Mike got tired, just ask Buster Douglas. 7.Patterson would have made a fantastic cruiser weight champion at 185-190 in shape He hit you hard often and quick but he had to climb off the canvas quite a bit to hand you a Brooklyn style ass whipping. Ken Norton was not a great puncher but he hit hard and somewhat often and he was so awkward but big George got him in two. There were others but we only needed to prove that Mike although he could have gone on did not and others were better and for a longer time.

[johnsebastianmiran]

I forgot about Ron Lyle and that upsets the top five of my list of hard hitting heavy wights. Mike didn't make the top five.

[CutMeMick]

Tysons def. one of the top hardest punchers not only in HW history but also All Time.

However he is not THEE hardest puncher.

Above Tyson all time I'd rate:

"Bazooka" Gomez
"Brown Bomber" Louis
Shavers
Marciano
Fitzsimmons
"The Mighty Atom" Wilde
"The Hawk" Jackson