Few things in all of sports are as electrifying as the one-punch knockout, and these are the most momentous and surprising of all. To make the cut here, the KO must not only be spectacular and dramatic, but it must truly be a single, devastating, unexpected, outcome-deciding blow, rather than the end of a one-sided defeat. below (i.e. Hearns vs Duran). So, without further ado, here are the best one-punch knockouts in history. Click on the links to view videos or detailed articles (or both). Look at them:
12. Sergio Martínez KO2 Paul Williams, November 20, 2010: The previous December, these two southpaws had given fans twelve rounds of exciting action and a Fight of the Year candidate, with Williams winning on points. So if you had wanted to bet that either of them, much less Martinez, would win the comeback with a stunning one-punch knockout in just the second round, you would have had people eagerly lining up for your money. But in fact, you’d be the one adding cabbage to your list after “Marvel” caught Williams with a perfectly timed left hand that detonated in Williams’ jaw and knocked him unconscious, with “The Punisher’s” eyes wide as lay callous on the canvas. Williams had never been arrested before, but he didn’t move a muscle when he was counted. It was a surprising result that solidified the Argentine’s position as the best middleweight in the world.
11. Hasim Rahman KO5 Lennox Lewis, April 22, 2001: Rahman was a fifteen-to-one underdog when he faced Lewis in South Africa, but it didn’t look like it as he gave it his best in four rounds. In the fifth, he pushed Lewis into the ropes, feinted and then unleashed a hell of a right hand that dropped Lewis and relieved him of his world heavyweight championship. Rahman upset all expectations and forced everyone to re-evaluate the position of the supposedly dominant Lewis.
10. James J. Jeffries KO23 James Corbett, May 11, 1900: Everyone loves an underdog, especially a former champion who unexpectedly regains some of his past glory. Corbett had been written off by most after his losses to Bob Fitzsimmons and Tom Sharkey, but for 22 rounds, and to the delight of the assembled spectators, he gave the burly Jeffries a boxing lesson and appeared to be on his way to a historic victory. . But a single right hand to the jaw knocked “Gentleman Jim” unconscious in the 23rd round and silenced the crowd. The punch ended Corbett as a legitimate title threat and cemented Jeffries, also known as “The Boilermaker,” as the best heavyweight in the world, a position that remained unquestioned for nearly a decade.
9. Julian Jackson KO4 Herol Graham, November 24, 1990: One of the most brutal and impressive one-punch knockouts ever witnessed earned Plumber Jackson his second division title and further cemented his reputation as an all-around great puncher. time. . The favorite Graham had dominated the first three rounds to such an extent that Jackson’s eyes were closing and after the third round the ring doctor informed “The Hawk” that he would soon have no choice but to stop the fight. The one-sided boxing lesson continued into the fourth round before Jackson suddenly struck with a ferocious right hook that instantly knocked out Graham.
8. Antonio Tarver KO2 Roy Jones Jr., May 15, 2004: For years, a very cocky Roy Jones Jr. seemed unbeatable. Then, very suddenly, he wasn’t anymore. He had never been seriously injured, much less stopped, and his only defeat up to that point was by disqualification; Dozens of fans considered him a modern great whose name could be said in the same breath as Willie Pep or Sugar Ray Robinson. So imagine the shock when they saw a single left hook from the underdog Tarver end their fight in just the second round. (Note: Unlike the other knockouts on this list, the record book shows this to be a technical knockout as the referee stopped the fight before finishing the count and with Jones standing. However, immediately after the stoppage, a stunned Roy had to be prevented from falling again. For all intents and purposes, a clean knockout.)
7. Mike Weaver KO15 John Tate, March 31, 1980: There are no more dramatic knockout victories than this one. Tate may have been a paper champion, but many considered him highly regarded and were preparing him for a big-money match against former champion Muhammad Ali. All he had to do was outlast Weaver, a journeyman with nine losses under his belt. For fourteen rounds, Tate dominated the challenger, but in the fifteenth, a desperate Weaver landed the biggest blow of his career, a left hook that put Tate to sleep. That single hook completely changed both men’s lives. Weaver would remain a force in the heavyweight division for years to come, while Tate quickly faded.
6. Jersey Joe Walcott KO 7 Ezzard Charles, July 18, 1951: In this, his record fifth attempt at the heavyweight crown, Walcott was nine to one underdog, not to mention the oldest challenger in history of the title. Two previous encounters between Charles and Walcott had been decided by scorecards, but this time Jersey Joe abruptly landed a huge left hook in the seventh round that put the great “Cincinnati Cobra” down for the count. A single, perfect shot redeemed all the tribulations of Walcott’s fifteen-year fight for the title.
5. Juan Manuel Márquez KO6 Manny Pacquiao, December 8, 2012: Did the fifth-greatest one-punch KO of all time really happen as recently as 2012? If he did. When a single punch completely alters the careers and legacies of two of the greatest boxers of the last few decades and also realigns the dynamics of one of boxing’s greatest rivalries, then it has to rank high on this list. Add in the fact that Pacquiao boasts an excellent chin and that Marquez seemed to be taking the worst of things to the point where his massive right hand decided things, and he has a knockout for good.
4. Sugar Ray Robinson KO5 Gene Fullmer, May 1, 1957: Gene Fullmer was, without a doubt, one of the toughest boxers of all time. He doesn’t make our list of the 12 greatest Chins of all time for the simple reason that, unlike the pugs who do, he suffered a knockout, and a clean one at that. Which is maybe a little harsh on “The Utah Cyclone.” After all, it was the only time he counted to ten and it happened only after the great Sugar Ray hit his famous “Perfect Punch.” Robinson had lost to Fullmer a few months earlier and it looked like the rematch might yield a similar result until BANG! — Sugar Ray’s deadly left hook ended everything.
3. Rocky Marciano KO13 Jersey Joe Walcott, September 23, 1952: “If I lose, get my name out of the record books,” Walcott taunted before his first fight with Marciano, mocking the challenger as a bumbling amateur. Reflecting that lack of respect, throughout the fight he kept his left hand dangerously low, daring Rocky to tag him. Far behind on points in a grueling battle, Marciano finally did just that, hitting Walcott with a perfectly timed right hand that instantly knocked the champion unconscious. One hit destroyed Walcott’s confidence and effectively ended his career, while also ushering in the greatness of “The Brockton Blockbuster.”
2. Robert Fitzsimmons KO14 James Corbett, March 17, 1897: They say a good big man always beats a good little man, but when middleweight champion Fitzsimmons challenged Corbett for the heavyweight crown, the unexpected suddenly happened. a very unexpected way. In the fourteenth round, Corbett seemed headed for a one-sided points victory; he had largely controlled the fight and had even come close to stopping “The Freckled Wonder,” but then, out of nowhere, “Ruby” delivered a truly historic body shot. The shot left Corbett on the canvas, writhing in pain, where he counted to ten while Wyatt Earp looked on. This was Fitzsimmons’ second division title, as he would later win the light heavyweight crown and become boxing’s first triple crown champion.
1. George Foreman KO10 Michael Moorer, November 5, 1994: Arguably no punch in boxing history is as monumental as the right hand that satisfied the 46-year-old Foreman’s quixotic quest for the heavyweight crown, two decades after losing. to Muhammad Ali. Far behind in points and just minutes away from the loss and the likely end of his career, Big George finally came home with a right cross that crashed into the champion’s chin and put him on the ground for the count. A perfectly timed right hand forever damaged Moorer’s credibility and confidence, upended the heavyweight title picture and elevated Foreman from a rare heavyweight champion to a true boxing icon.
