These Are the Top 5 Most Impressive KOs in Boxing History
- From “Sugar” Ray Leonard to Canelo Alvarez, the best knockouts in boxing stem from generations of talent.
- Whether it’s one-punch knockouts or technical stoppage beatdowns, our top-five knockouts of all-time rankings don’t discriminate.
- And don’t forget; you can find some of the best boxing odds and KO props at BetUS Sportsbook.
Boxing, often referred to as the sweet science, is a captivating yet incredibly violent interpretation of individual anatomy most revered when one fighter can render his opponent unconscious.
To most, this is known as a knockout!
It isn’t for the fainthearted, but it’s unquestionably the most electrifying method of victory in all sports! Forget your goals, touchdowns, and home runs; nothing surges adrenaline through boxing betting fans like a KO, and today, I present my top five knockouts in boxing history!
Top 5 Boxing KOs of All Time
1. “Sugar” Ray Leonard Sends Thomas Hearns Through the Ropes
Ok, I know what you’re thinking: “Dave, this isn’t a knockout,” blah, blah, blah.
Yes, back in 1981, during the golden era of boxing’s welterweight division, ‘Sugar’ Ray Leonard did claim victory over Thomas Hearns via technical knockout… but the leadup to this TKO involved a consistent barrage of combinations that personified Leonard as one of the greatest showmen that assisted in etching his name into the history books.
Moreover, and perhaps most impressively, Leonard was losing on all the judges’ scorecards before he started boxing in the 13th round with energy and cardio like it was the first! One big blow shifted momentum in the latter stages of the fight, as we witnessed Hearn crumble through the ropes before stepping out into the 14th round to meet his demise.
An unfathomable amount of damage was dealt, and a consistent flurry of punches will have you wincing before the referee finally steps in to save Hearns from serious harm.
2.Muhammad Ali Rumbles George Foreman in the Jungle
“Float like a butterfly, sting like a bee. The hands can’t hit what the eyes can’t see.” The famous quote of the late great Muhammad Ali was never truer than when he out-maneuvered a menacing George Foreman at the infamous ‘Rumble in the Jungle’ event in 1974.
G.O.A.T-status remains with Ali to this day; he’s one of, if not the greatest, heavyweight pugilists of all time. However, he was never known for sheer one-punch knockout power in boxing news circles, but his masterful defensive footwork and techniques which allowed him to survive some of the toughest opponents who packed a serious punch.
The scene was set in Africa for ‘Rumble in the Jungle’; Ali had been on a three-year layoff, during which time Foreman had earned the reputation of the most dominant and hard-hitting heavyweight. What Foreman hadn’t faced, though, was Ali’s trademark rope-a-dope.
After eight rounds of chasing the sport’s biggest icon around the ring, his gas tank began to wilt as the defensively masterful Ali took his defense into all-out offensive aggression. The rest was history; Ali overcame the biggest test of his career and did so emphatically.
There isn’t a top-ranked all-time boxing list that cannot feature Ali, and this is arguably his best knockout and possibly the most important KO in boxing history.
3. Juan Manuel Marquez Humanizes Manny Pacquiao
One of the most overlooked rivalries in boxing history was between Juan Manuel Marquez and Manny Pacquiao, and it all came to an end when the former damn near decapitated his foe in the sixth round.
We’d already witnessed 41 rounds and three grueling bouts between Marquez and Pacquiao. Still, this rivalry was turned on its head – literally – when one fateful right hand sent “Pac-Man” crashing to the canvas, thus humanizing a boxer we previously believed could never seem so vulnerable.
Of course, Pacquiao’s resume stands above Marquez’s, and these legend statuses aren’t compared. However, no man from a 72-fight career has delivered such a brutal knockout to “Pac-Man” as we saw on this night in 2012.
4. Canelo Alvarez Sends Amir Khan to the Shadow Realm
With Floyd Mayweather Jr. preparing to hang his gloves and call it a day, Saul “Canelo” Alvarez prepared to become the pound-for-pound greatest. Unfortunately for Britain’s boxing legend Amir Khan, he was standing in the way of a prime Canelo looking to make a statement every time he stepped into the ring.
After five rounds of stalking his prey like a lion in the jungle, Alvarez finally found the perfect range he needed in the sixth. An awkward Khan was never a simple man to overcome in the ring, but an excellently timed overhand right from Canelo sent him to the shadow realm for one of the Mexican’s cleanest knockouts from a 65-fight pro career.
Canelo’s pugilist tenure has no shortage of knockouts in the later rounds, but this one stands out due to its unassuming nature. Ironically, Lennox Lewis might have jinxed his fellow countryman from the color commentary box as the former heavyweight champ uttered the words, “One punch will change this fight,” just seconds before Canelo wiped Khan out.
5. Deontay Wilder
Mike Tyson, Evander Holyfield, Tyson Fury, and even Oleksandr Usyk were debated for this fifth and final position. Each man in their own right has a beautiful collection of knockouts on their resume, but I wanted to reserve this position for the greatest heavyweight knockout artist of the last decade… Deontay Wilder.
Wilder might be past the point to start backing him by KO at BetUS Sportsbook, and he isn’t the most technical heavyweight. Still, his God-like power saw him unmatched during a run to world title status, including two knockout victories over a brute in Luis Ortiz, who has never been knocked out by another opponent to this day.
The first knockout from the first fight was impressive, but during Wilder vs. Ortiz II, a blistering straight right pierced the guard of “King Kong” as a punch heard around the world saw the “Bronze Bomber” add another knockout victim to a resume that still holds a 97% KO-finish rate.
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Questions of the Day
Who’s the best knockout artist in boxing history?
Statistically, Rocky Marciano is the greatest knockout artist in boxing history. With 43 knockouts from 49 fights, this legend finished his undefeated heavyweight career–a rarity unmatched in the heavyweight division.
