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A Closer Look at Some of the Power Punches in Boxing Today

boxingringheaderBy Jeremiah “Griffo’s Handkerchief” Preisser

When the question of who the biggest puncher in the fight game is posed, there are a number of men who will permeate the discussion. Sergey “Krusher” Kovalev is one of the most mentioned knockout artists and surely a good choice, as he can break ribs with jabs. Kazakh puncher, Gennady “GGG” Golovkin, is another highly touted puncher. His 91% knockout rate is eye-popping and his stoppage streak of 20 straight is well-noted. “Dr. Steelhammer”, the heavyweight champion himself, Mr. Wladimir Klitschko, is usually mentioned, as well. His accumulation of 53 victories inside the distance and one-punch kayos over Pulev, Thompson, Chambers, Austin, etc., highlight how stiff his shots are when they land cleanly. Adonis Stevenson, Marcos Maidana, Alexander Povetkin, Nicholas Walters, Lucas Martin Matthysse, Deontay Wilder, and Artur Beterbiev are also additions to many lists.

However, this article is not meant to reconfirm what many already know and show why the aforementioned pugilists have that in-ring equalizer, but it is attempt to examine the forgotten bangers; the men who have been endowed with ring-shaking power by the boxing gods. I am referring to the modern carriers of the torch to chin-checking he-men like Earnie Shavers, Ricardo Moreno, Julian Letterlough, Randall Bailey, Buck Smith and the many others who may lack the overall ability to get or stay on top, but can flip your brain switch off with a single blow.

One of these partakers in the not-so-sweet science, is a rising cruiserweight known as “The Russian Hammer”, or Dmitry Kudryashov. With a spotless record of 18-0 with every one of his opponents never seeing the finish line, it seems he is a fistic force to be reckoned with, and he is. He has utterly destroyed men when he touches them. Take a gander at the 22-second victory over former cruiserweight champion, Juan Carlos Gomez. One clean right hand through the middle was all it took to give the southpaw veteran a squishy, sweaty, canvas nap. Shawn Cox met a similar fate, though he saw round 2.

Never been stopped Puerto Rican and two-time title challenger, Francisco Palacios, was left sprawled across the floor by a devastating left hook in the first go-round of his bout with the stoic Russian. Vikapita Meroro, a Namibian tough guy who had seen the final bell against Stanislav Kashtanov, Isaac Chilemba, and Braimah Kamoko, took a while to succumb to the awe-inspiring force of the Russian’s hammer, but a well-placed left hook to the body folded him like an old piece of insulation in the 6th.

Kudryashov is serious business and the results show that he can bang with either hand, to the head and to the body. So watch out division between light-heavyweight and heavyweight that no one seems to care about but they should

Deutschland’s disher of cerebral pain, Vincent Feigenbutz, likes his opponents like people prefer their root canals: blacked out, slumped, and slobbering. The powerfully built German’s record resembles Kudryashov’s,19-1, 18 KO’s, though two opponents did manage to escape the “sleepy weepy” (as Chappie would have put it). Also like “The Russian Hammer,” he seems to have “Randall Bailey Syndrome”. What I mean is that Feigenbutz can punch. He knows it. So do his opponents. However, he is too content to sit back and wait for the moment to come, as opposed to going and creating it. If the German can fix that and refine his missile delivery systems (aka technique), he’ll come with a warning sign attached to his contract.

The Philippines lays claim to one of the most devastating punchers in the game, and I’m not referring to the “Pacman”. That fellow is twenty-four-year-old featherweight, “Marvelous” Marvin Sonsona. The weighted fists of the southpaw may sound obvious when his record of 20-1-1, with 15 KO’s is read, but even that doesn’t do justice to the sledgehammer force contained within his clenched hands. Do yourself a favor and find his bouts with Akifumi Shimoda and Wandee Singwancha. Tell me how many pugilists throw an uppercut with that amount of concussive force, pound-for-pound.

Rogelio “Porky” Medina, a young Mexican deliverer of gloved wallops, is a name not thrown around by boxing pundits, but if he had greater skill to match his power, it would be. His claim to fame was a brutal halting of his 2014 bout with prospect, J’Leon Love. Medina hit him so hard with a near-perfect left hook in an exchange that he had Love’s leg twitching and had Love sprawling through the ropes in a meager attempt to secure his feet. Since then, the Mexican flamethrower has amassed three consecutive kayo victories, and I’m sure he will secure more. Overall, 30 stoppages in 36 in-ring triumphs isn’t bad for a twenty-six-year-old

Argentina has produced some formidable punchers of late, Marcos Maidana and Lucas Matthysse being the two best known. Their countryman, Jesus “El Forastero” Cuellar, is playing catch-up in terms of popularity, but the guy looks like he can throw some high hard ones (some low hard ones, too). Recently he needed one right hook in a fairly competitive fight to do away with fellow banger, Vic Darchinyan. Cuellar gave faded former champion, Juan Manuel Lopez, a brief nap back in 2014 and overwhelmed Ruben Tamayo in five. Highly touted up-and-comer, Oscar Valdez, couldn’t put Tamayo away and he landed the goods.

Light-welterweight, John Molina, JR., packs a punch. A mean one. Many of us were aware of it after he put “The Machine” (Lucas Matthysse) down on the seat of his pants twice, but the showcasing of his power against quality boxers dates back further. How many of us remember the dramatic, late-round blitzing of Henry Lundy and one-time titlist, Mickey Bey? In both fights he was being outboxed handily and managed to pull out the victory with his heavy hands.

Of course this list wouldn’t be complete without a heavyweight and a bunch of potential chinny opponents for him to lay waste to. Unfortunately, the glass-chinned foes saturate the heavyweight ranks, but at 42, Amir “Hardcore” Mansour might not get many more opportunities to pad his knockout record. Currently, he sits at 16 knockout wins in 22 fights, so he has got to step on the gas pedal. Either way, he rates up there with the hardest smashers in the fight game. The American’s destruction of Fred Kassi helped bolster that claim and Kelvin Price, Jason Gavern, and Dominique Alexander didn’t look much better while flopping to the canvass. All contenders better be on high-alert when the step through those taut ropes against Mansour.

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