Larry Holmes’ Left Jab
It was lightning quick, powerful, very accurate and repeatedly thrown. Larry Holmes, also known as “The Easton Assassin,” could have solely thrown the jab an entire fight and many times, he practically did.
His long arms and snapping motion accentuated its effectiveness: a piercing jab that he fired as if it was a whip or a wet towel.
Holmes used it as a range-finder for his stiff right cross or uppercut, to cut up his opponents’ face and snap their heads back and forth with it while piling up the points. His opponents knew it was coming but could not get out of its way.
Many say the jab is the single most important punch in boxing and no one threw it better than Holmes. Even as his skills and speed eroded, his famed left jab always remained a potent weapon.
At 42 years old, Holmes befuddled the champion Evander Holyfied with the jab and gave him a very spirited fight. Holyfied later said Holmes gave him a lesson on how to use the jab. It was perhaps the best jab in the history of the sport.
Muhammad Ali’s Reflexes and Agility
When it came to hand and foot speed for a heavyweight, Muhammad Ali had no equals. “The Greatest of All Time” could dart in and out in a flash without getting hit in return and seamlessly throw six-punch combinations before his hapless opponents could even react.
His uncanny reflexes, perfect timing and amazing footwork allowed him to duck, dodge and lean away from the opponent’s punches. At his best, he was almost impossible to hit with a combination.
And he could time you perfectly with blitzing shots even as he moved backward. We have never seen another heavyweight with this kind of speed, timing and agility before and since Ali.
Earnie Shavers’ Right Cross
The single hardest punch in the history of the sport. There may have been bigger, physically stronger men than “The Acorn,” but no one threw the right with more thunderous power and murderous intent than Earnie Shavers.
He launched it by putting everything behind the shot, knowing if it landed cleanly, there was no one he could not knockout with it.
Granite chinned opponents like Muhammad Ali, Larry Holmes and Randall “Tex” Cobb said Shavers hit them harder than any man ever did.
Shavers was named the “Puncher of the Century” by the International Boxing Association. Most people in boxing circles still consider Shavers the hardest puncher of all-time and his right cross was responsible for nearly every one of his knockouts.
Mike Tyson’s Right Uppercut
It was the most devastating punch throughout the 1980’s and responsible for many spectacular knockouts during Mike Tyson’s reign of terror.
It made opponents’ eyes roll before they turned white, broke ribs and even smashed a few noses.
George Foreman’s uppercuts might have been heavier than Tyson’s, but no one threw the uppercut with more speed, velocity and accurate precision than “Iron Mike” did with his right hand.
Tyson’s uppercut and Earnie Shavers’ right cross were probably the two most feared punches in heavyweight history.
Joe Frazier’s Left Hook
Perhaps the most lethal punch in boxing because it was equally devastating thrown to the head or to the body. There have been many in the division that threw a mean left hook, but none did as much damage or were as famous as Joe Frazier’s left hook.
If the others shot theirs out of a canon, Smokin’ Joe’s hook was more of a wrecking ball. He rained left hooks, digging and grinding at the body and then to the head, until its foundation completely collapsed.
First he destroyed opponents’ body, then their will. He was the first man to drop and nearly decapitate Jimmy Ellis with it, the first to stop ironed-chinned George Chuvalo and the left hook that dropped Muhammad Ali in the 15th round of their epic first clash nearly ended Ali’s career.
George Foreman’s Power and Strength
There probably has never been anyone who has ever entered the ring and donned the gloves that was stronger than George Foreman.
“Big George” used his legendary strength to push opponents off-balance, easily breakout of clinches or trap and smother them along the ropes while positioning himself to unleash his tremendously powerful punches.
While strength does not always translate to punching power, Foreman had both in spades.
He was a schoolyard bully who outmuscled his opponents and was nearly as adept at knocking them out with frightening ease as Joe Frazier and Ken Norton discovered.
Jack Johnson’s Defense
While Ali used his unparalleled speed and reflexes to dodge and slip his opponents’ punches, Jack Johnson was the real defensive savant. The “Galveston Giant” was nearly as adept at dodging punches as Ali, but he also utilized superior ring generalship, parrying his opponents’ punches, blocking with the elbow, feinting and clinching.
Johnson was so effective at defending his space and following-up with counter punches that he was way ahead of his time.
A century later, many boxing trainers still believe Johnson was the prototype defensive master who laid the blueprint for fighters on how to defend themselves. A testimony of his incredible defensive abilities.
Joe Louis’ Killer Instincts
Gladiators like Jack Dempsey were fiery and savage, but Joe Louis was a calm, cold-blooded assassin–perhaps the greatest finisher in the sport’s history.
If “The Brown Bomber” had his adversary hurt, they were doomed. No one had better killer instincts than Louis.
Seeing his opponent visibly weaken, he would follow-up with a powerful flurry that was pinpoint accurate and deadly.
Louis was dangerous at any point of the fight and his superior technique allowed him to always be in a position to land that knockout punch or pounce on his opponents for the kill better than anyone ever has before or since.
George Chuvalo’s Durability (Chin)
There may not necessarily be any technique involved in the ability to absorb a punch and sustained punishment, but if there is, George Chuvalo certainly mastered the ability.
Many people think he had the strongest chin in boxing history, having never been knocked down in his entire boxing career (amateur, professional or even in sparring sessions). His granite chin, coupled with his pummeling style and merciless body attack, made the five-time Canadian champion one of the toughest fighters in the 1960’s and 1970’s during the heavyweights’ golden era.
His durability, rugged fighting style and physicality were too much for most opponents and even earned the respect of his conquerors, which included Floyd Patterson, Muhammad Ali, Joe Frazier and George Foreman.
Rocky Marciano’s Championship Heart
All the great champions had this important intangible, which separated them from the rest of the pack. Their sheer will to win and overcome adversity was an essential ingredient to their greatness.
The great ones all exhibited tremendous heart, but there was only one heavyweight that finished his career undefeated. The “Brockton Blockbuster” may have been the toughest of them all.
If Rocky Marciano’s famed right cross, the “Suzy Q,” did not knockout his opponent (43 of his 49 wins came via KO), his never-say-die attitude and full belief in his ability to score the win did.
And, as he showed against Jersey Joe Walcott and Archie Moore, Marciano could come off the floor or overcome a severely cut nose – like he did against Ezzard Charles – to do it.
No one had more heart and will than Rocky.
Muhammad Ali’s Confidence
“The Greatest” is, quite naturally, the only boxer that makes it on this list twice. This is because Muhammad Ali’s supreme confidence was every bit as important as his uncanny reflexes and timing were to win fights.
No fighter had as much belief in his abilities than Ali. His unwavering belief in his ability to defeat any opponent allowed him to withstand the brutal, constant barrage of punches from Joe Frazier and not be intimidated by the likes of Sonny Liston, George Foreman and Earnie Shavers–some of the scariest, most powerful heavyweights of all time.
In fact, in his hey day, Ali used to accurately predict the rounds when he would stop his opponents. That is how confident he was in his ability. It was at another level.
Evander Holyfield’s State-of-the-Art Training
Evander Holyfield was not the first boxer to incorporate anaerobic, endurance and strength training, he just took it to the another level.
A typical training day included heavy weight lifting followed by a dance workout or ballet, swimming laps and then running sprints. Holyfield also followed a very disciplined nutritional eating plan to fuel his muscles and give him energy.
The advanced and, at the time, very unique training and diet regime allowed “The Real Deal” to develop into a sculpted, muscular heavyweight who had excellent endurance, fast recovery, could take heavy punishment and sustain an intense workmanlike pace.
It also really developed his back and shoulders to punch with more power and strengthen the legs to not be outmuscled by naturally bigger, stronger opponents like Lennox Lewis, Riddick Bowe and Ray Mercer.
Tim Witherspoon’s Right Haymaker
A looping overhand right that is distinct enough in its delivery and technique from the straight right cross. Tim Witherspoon practically mastered this punch.
Few threw it with as much speed, accuracy and power as “Terrible Tim” did. His haymaker–set-up beautifully with a quick, stiff left jab–was especially effective against taller opponents (e.g., Anders Eklund, James Broad, Alfonso Ratliff) and was very hard for his opponents to time.
He scored some devastating knockouts with it and nearly felled Holmes with it in a gallant effort to annex the title from the long-reigning champion, losing a disputed split decision.
Wladimar Klitschko’s Massive Size
Size matters, particularly among heavyweights where the size disparity could be tremendous because there are no weight limits above 195 pounds.
The Klitschko brothers usually enjoyed a height and weight advantage over all their opponents and younger brother Wladimir was especially effective at utilizing his size advantage.
Not as tall or as durable as older brother Vitali, Wlad was longer-armed, had more polished boxing skills and–under the tutelage of the late great Emanuel Steward–masterfully used his long left jab and powerful right hand to overwhelm the opponent, smother or tie them up, using his superior weight and strength while keeping out of their reach to protect his brittle chin.
Sonny Liston’s Intimidating Aura
George Foreman and Mike Tyson tried to emulate his intimidating stare and dark, tough persona. No one, however, could instill as much fear into his opponents like Sonny Liston.
He was the most feared fighter in history for good reason: the menacing glare, iron chin, 15-inch fists that packed a tremendous wallop and a jackhammer for a jab that was accentuated by his 84-inch reach.
The fact that “The Bear” supposedly had mob ties, was arrested at least 19 times, no one knew exactly when he was born and his mysterious death all made him an enigma.
Liston was quite possibly the most powerful puncher the division had seen up until that point. He could take a punch and although he was a bit slow of hands and feet, his boxing ability was vastly underrated. Combined with his intimidating persona, he was thought to be invincible.
Opponents avoided him like the plague. Those who fought him were already mentally defeated by the time the bell rang to start the fight.
It took no less than a young Muhammad Ali (then named Cassius Clay) at the peak of his abilities to defeat Liston and shatter that mystic.
