Boxing's Top 100 Punchers: 85-81

Mark Lyons is back with the latest instalment of his Top 100 Punchers list.  Today he's counting down numbers 85 through 81.

Mark's previous entry: Numbers 90 through 86

85. Marco Antonio Barrera

Career Record: 65-7 (43)

Most Impressive Stoppages: Kennedy McKinney TKO12, Paulie Ayala TKO10, Jesse Benavides KO3

Marco was savage throughout his great career with crushing hooks to the head and body.  I would rate Erik Morales slightly ahead in terms of greatness, but Barrera was the bigger puncher, and lets face it when you're able to hurt El Terrible, you belong on the list!

Paulie Ayala was no great featherweight, but nobody else was able to stop him. Marco also had Tapia reeling and I feel he could have ended that fight if not for sympathy. As the years went by, he developed into more of a boxer, but he still had the one shot power to violently floor Juan Manual Marquez with a perfect right hand. Not my favorite fighter, but I always respected him and his left hand, which was deeply damaging in every way. He had one of the best left uppercuts you will ever see.

84. Andy Ganigan

Career Record: 34-5 (30)

Most Impressive Stoppages: Sean O'Grady KO2, Arturo Pineda KO2

Oddly, I've always looked at him as a small, southpaw version of an Earnie Shavers. He had a thunderbolt of a left cross, but stamina issues kept him from achieving more with his devastating power.

The Sean O'Grady fight was poetic justice. Pat O'Grady decided he was going to start his own organization and his son was the cornerstone. What followed, was a Wlad Klitschko / Corrie Sanders style beatdown in the O'Grady's hometown, on national TV.  I couldn't find a clip of that so  I've included his dropping of Alexis Arguello, which means more anyway. It was not a flash knock down, as he had Arguello in bad shape at the end of this first round. He found himself worse off later though (RIP Alexis, you were the man).

83. Tommy Morrison

Career Record: 48-3-1 (42)

Most Impressive Stoppages: Razor Ruddock TKO6, Carl Williams TKO8, Joe Hipp TKO9

I was never a fan of "The Duke", but as I sit here, mired in the misery that is watching the current heavyweight division I can't help but look back fondly on the all-action fighter that was Tommy Morrison. His chin was pretty weak, his stamina was junk, but the dude was there to knock your head off and more often than not, he did.

Seeing Tommy hugging Carl Williams feet only to come back and batter him a few rounds later, and the absolutely epic war with Joe Hipp were a couple of my favorite Morrison memories.  Early in his career, against the no-hopers on ESPN, he had some Tyson-esque finishes with his nasty left hook.

82. Tony Zale

Career Record: 67-18-2 (45)

Most Impressive Stoppages: Rocky Graziano KO6 & KO3, Al Hostak KO2 & TKO13

"The Man of Steel" may have accomplished more in his career had he not lost some prime years serving his country.  He still managed to carve out a very solid resume, as his left hook to the body and head sent many a man to the canvas. Flooring Al Hostak eight times during his second round KO makes you laugh about some of the stoppages we see today. Not that some of those older fights couldn't have used a ref in there sooner, but damn those old time guys were tough!

Here is the awesome show The Way It Was, with Zale and Graziano watching their classic 3rd battle together.

81. Harry Wills

Career Record: 68-9-2 (54)

Most Impressive Stoppages: Sam langford KO6 & TKO7, Sam McVea KO5, Fred Fulton KO3, Kid Norfolk KO2, Denver Ed Martin KO1

Unfortunately, I have no You Tube here. All I have to go on is what I've read about the "The Black Panther". This isn't a list about boxing politics so I'll just say it's one of the sport's biggest shames that Harry never had the opportunity to face Dempsey, and leave it at that.

There are some things you can nitpick, as his biggest wins came against older and smaller men. But those men were still hard as stone and fighters like Langford & McVea fought a lot of bigger guys that didn't stop them. From all accounts Harry was a very skilled big man for his day with a heavy right hand. I have a feeling if he was born a few decades later, he would have placed higher.

Check back soon for the next instalment of my Top 100 Punchers list.

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