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Floyd Mayweather Sr had only one man in mind when naming the hardest puncher in boxing history

Sheldan Keay

1st May, 2026

Floyd Mayweather Sr had only one man in mind when naming the hardest puncher in boxing history
Image credit: Getty

Floyd Mayweather Sr only had one name in mind when asked who he believes to be boxing’s biggest ever puncher.

Mayweather Sr is well equipped to answer that question after being around the sport for over 50 years. He made his professional debut back in 1974 and competed 35 times, including a bout against the legendary Sugar Ray Leonard.

It is his training career that Mayweather Sr is perhaps best known for, having notably coached his son Floyd Jr to numerous world title wins, along with spending periods in the corner for the likes of Oscar De La Hoya and Ricky Hatton.

In recent years, Mayweather Sr has shared his thoughts on a wide range of topics from within the boxing world, and in a resurfaced clip, he revealed that he deems Earnie Shavers to be the hardest hitter in the history of the sport.

“Earnie Shavers! [Asked, not Mike Tyson?] Earnie Shavers!”

It is a view that many others also share, and it is easy to see why, with 70 of the 76 wins Shavers claimed coming by knockout, 23 of them inside the first round.

While he may have unsuccessfully challenged for the world heavyweight champion on two occasions, he displayed his huge power in both of those contests, rocking Muhammad Ali in the second round of their 1977 clash, and dropping Larry Holmes in round seven of their 1979 battle.

Shavers sadly passed away in September 2022 at the age of 78 following a short illness, but it is clear that boxing fans will forever remember him as one of the most powerful men to ever grace the sport.

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