Boxing’s top 10 hard men: number one Our list of the toughest men in the history of the sport John Dennen 2nd August, 2015 1. Jake LaMottaThe ultimate tough guy, the “Bronx Bull” and former world middleweight champ. No one floored him in his prime. From 106 fights against the very best, LaMotta was stopped just four times, mostly in the final years of his career.