Boxing's Top 100 Punchers: 95-91

Mark Lyons is back with the latest instalment of his Top 100 Punchers list.  Today he's counting down numbers 95 through 91.

Mark's previous entry: Introduction, plus numbers 100 through 96

95. Tony Canzoneri

Career Record: 137-21-10 (44)

Most Impressive Stoppages: Kid Chocolate KO2, Jack Berg KO3, Frankie Klick TKO9, Al Singer KO1

A world class fighter from bantamweight all the way up to junior-welter, the versatile Canzoneri was comfortable in any type of fight. Though known more for his brilliant overall boxing skills, his power was substantial and gets overlooked probably because of his KO percentage. But any man that puts Kid Chocolate & Jack Berg down for ten counts inside of nine minutes can bang with the best of them.

This is just a guess, but I think he tested how guys could handle his power early and if they were still standing after a few rounds, would switch to boxing their ears off - kind of like Roy Jones in that respect.

94. Bert Cooper

Career Record: 36-22 (30)

Most Impressive Stoppages: Willie DeWitt TKO2, Joe Hipp TKO5

Bert was a dangerous man. In the ring to others and out of the ring to himself. His brief cruiserweight career saw him tag Henry Tillman with his first loss and an early move to heavy meant a gruesomely shattered nose for Canadian Olympic silver medalist Willie Dewitt.

While he became a journeyman at heavyweight, when you signed to fight Bert you had your fingers crossed that he didn’t give a damn, because when he was properly motivated and trained, his opponent was quickly howling, "Oh F%#k!". He had a bludgeoning right hand, either overhand or as an uppercut, and was the first man to ever have Evander Holyfield in serious trouble. While he was paying for it with his ass moments later, it still speaks volumes about his power.

If that isn’t enough, pop in a tape or YouTube his epic brawls with Mercer & Moorer.  Bert had his limitations as a fighter, but he could knock your head off.

93. Aaron Pryor

Career record: 39-1 (35)

Most Impressive Stoppages: Alexis Arguello TKO14 & KO10, Dujuan Johnson TKO7, Antonio Cervantes KO4

A non-stop punching machine with pop in both hands, more often than not, his foes needed rescuing long before the final bell. While I've long been of the opinion the Hawk's power was more of the accumulative variety, there are a couple factors that garner him a spot on the list anyway.

First off, Pryor was really a lightweight that moved up to 140 because he couldn’t secure fights in the more glamorous division, and facing bigger men can force a fighter to land more shots to finish matters.  Secondly, even though they were older, he effectively starched Arguello twice and Cervantes once. I wouldn’t call either of them prime, not by a long shot, but I also wouldn’t have a long list of guys who could have duplicated that feat.  This volume puncher could clearly bang.

92. Ricardo Lopez

Career Record: 51-0-1 (38)

Most Impressive Stoppages: Saman Sorjaturong TKO2, Ratanapol Sor Vorapin TKO3, Ala Villamor KO8, Alex Sanchez TKO5

Let’s show a little love for the little guys. While I don’t see the all-time great status in Lopez that some fans do, you don’t see many men weighing in at 105lbs that can end a fight with a single shot. Sorjaturong was able to take everything Humberto Gonzalez (a fighter I considered for the list), threw at him and Lopez was decimating him moments after the opening bell.

He had every possible punch in his arsenal and while I wish we could have seen mega-fights with the likes of Carbajal, it’s hard to look past all of Finito's destructive performances against solid guys.

91. Wilfredo Gomez

Career Record: 44-3-1 (42)

Most Impressive Stoppages: Carlos Zarate TKO5, Lupe Pintor TKO14, Royal Kobayashi KO3, Juan Meza TKO6, Dong Kyun Yun KO12

I see him higher on just about every list, but like Pryor, he didn’t really have that explosive one shot power. At the same time he ground his opponents down and only two of the victories over the course of his career went the full distance.

His two most impressive wins were against guys coming up from bantamweight, but Zarate & Pintor were as tough as they come and he finished them both, one in a grueling war and the other in his signature masterpiece. Bazooka was a favorite of mine and I thought about not including him at all, but when it comes down to it, his record speaks for itself.

Previous Instalment: 100-96

Next instalment coming soon!

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