Shannon Briggs faced a selection of ferocious punchers throughout his 67-fight career, including Lennox Lewis, George Foremen and Vitali Klitschko, but one of them punched so hard that it felt like getting hit by a car.
‘The Cannon’ faced a prime Lewis in 1998, back when he suffered three knockdowns en route to a fifth-round stoppage defeat.
Lewis had entered their fight as an almighty favourite and the WBC world heavyweight champion, using Briggs as a springboard to collide with Evander Holyfield the following year.
Before that, Briggs had claimed a majority decision victory over Foreman, who outlanded the former two-time world champion but ultimately announced his retirement shortly after their non-title fight.
But despite being at the end of his decorated career, ‘Big George’ nonetheless added plenty of credibility to one of the sport’s oldest adages: that power is the last thing to leave a fighter.
Briggs also lost to the heavy-hitting Klitschko, via a wide unanimous decision, in 2010, but seemingly remains convinced that Foreman was the hardest puncher he ever encountered.
Speaking with First Round TV, the Brooklyn man offered a vivid description of what it felt like to be hit by the devastating fists of Foreman.
“Nobody hit like George Foreman. George Foreman hit hard, champ.
“I got hit by a car one time… That’s how it felt when I fought George Foreman. He hit me one time and knocked me out, but he [didn’t] know it, and he hit me with another shot and it woke me up.”
Foreman became the oldest world heavyweight champion of all time, at 45 years old, by knocking out Michael Moorer with a seemingly effortless shot in 1994.
Prior to that, the tremendous puncher had established his formidable reputation by stopping the likes of Joe Frazier and Ken Norton in the 1970s.
