George Foreman claims that Deontay Wilder doesn’t possess the punching power of Mike Tyson – despite him being the hardest-hitting heavyweight in history.
The Bronze Bomber has a knockout ratio of 97 per cent after stopping 41 of his 43 opponents following his brutal one-shot finish against Luis Ortiz at the weekend.
Rocky Marciano is next on the list with a KO ratio of 87 per cent from his 49 fights – the same percentage as Ukrainian great Vitali Klitschko.
Foreman is fourth with 85 per cent from 81 fights, with Iron Mike completing the top five with 76 per cent from 58 fights.
Wilder’s emphatic win was his tenth successful defence of his WBC title, but former world champion Foreman insists he still needs a victory against a top-tier
opponent.
Boxing legend George Foreman insists Mike Tyson is bigger KO puncher than Deontay Wilder despite what stats say https://t.co/8hf5afRQAi
— The Sun – Boxing (@SunBoxing) November 27, 2019
Speaking of the 2008 Olympic bronze medallist, he told TMZ Sports: “He’s good but he hasn’t approached Joe Louis, Joe Frazier, Mike Tyson. No, he hasn’t approached
that kind of recognition yet. No way.
“For me, he has to have a performance like Mike Tyson did over Trevor Berbick. Boy, when I saw that, I was down visiting Vegas, and I thought, ‘This guy is a
nightmare!'”
He added: “I think the Deontay Wilder and Tyson Fury rematch would be one of the greatest of all time. Not just today, but of all time.
“If I see that fight, I would say Deontay Wilder has moved up in status and whoever wins the fight will probably be one of the greatest heavyweights of all time.”
Wilder then responded to Foreman’s claim as he stated that those of the old era have to give him the credit he duly deserves.
Speaking to TMZ Sports, he said: “I understand Foreman and all these guys, they got to let their era go in the past, I am the hardest hitting puncher in boxing history
period.
“I’m 42 and 0 with 41 KOs and the numbers speak for itself, I’ve got a 97 per cent [KO] ratio and I’m above everybody, numbers don’t lie.
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“I don’t know what Foreman’s talking about, they got to learn how to give me my credit, there’s no denying because over and over I’m going to prove them wrong each and
every time. You’re going to be looking silly.”