Mike Tyson and Deontay Wilder fall short of the top spot as World Boxing News counts down the top ten quickest knockout artists in history.
Wilder and Tyson do not hold a record feat for the fastest number of rounds from their knockouts. The pair of hard hitters made the top five but ultimately had to take a backseat on that benchmark. Neither Tyson nor Wilder features at the summit when it comes to being heavyweight boxing’s earliest nights.
Tyson may have been renowned for his frightening knockout power in the ring. However, research has revealed that he trails Wilder, Frank Bruno, Tommy Morrison, and Shannon Briggs on the list of heavyweight speed merchants.
Statisticians have analyzed every heavyweight world champion since 1962, when two versions of the world title were split in two. Participants had to fight 100+ winning rounds to decipher the boxer with the quickest knockout ratio in history.
Former two-time world heavyweight champion Briggs surprisingly tops the pile. Powerhouse Briggs needed an average of just 2.71 rounds to knock out his opponent during his 60 career victories. “The Cannon” also holds the record for the most first-round knockouts ever.
Modern-day boxing’s most lethal knockout machine is Deontay Wilder, who sits second on the list. He’s improved over the years since the first list was produced, but only by a fraction due to his victory over Robert Helenius.
The Bronze Bomber may have lost his WBC title to Tyson Fury, but he closely follows Briggs with an average of just 2.98 rounds per knockout from his 43 KO wins. Sitting third and fourth on the list are ex-WBO world champion Morrison. Plus, British boxing legend Bruno. The pair required an average of 3.13 and 3.35 rounds to land a knockout.
Tyson, who reigned as the undisputed world heavyweight champion from 1987 to 1990, rounds off the top five with an average of 3.38 rounds per knockout from his 50 career victories.
Of the 55 boxers analyzed, David Haye [3.75] makes it into the top 10 in ninth place. He’s one position ahead of George Forman [3.86]. Lamont Brewster [3.48], Corrie Sanders [3.64], and Herbie Hide [3.73] make up the top ten spots.
Further down the list is ex-undisputed king Lennox Lewis [5.02], who sits 27th. Elsewhere, Wladimir Klitschko [5.13] is 30th, Tyson Fury [5.99] is 45th, and Roy Jones Jr [6.42] is 47th.
Three-time champion Muhammad Ali sits at the bottom of those analyzed at 8.68.
Top 10 fastest heavyweight knockout ratios
1 Shannon Briggs: 2.71 rounds
2 Deontay Wilder: 2.98 rounds
3 Tommy Morrison: 3.13
4 Frank Bruno: 3.35
5 Mike Tyson: 3.38
6 Lamon Brewster: 3.48
7 Corrie Sanders: 3.64
8 Herbie Hide: 3.73
9 David Haye: 3.75
10 George Foreman: 3.86
27 Lennox Lewis 5.02
30 Wladimir Klitschko 5.13
45 Tyson Fury 5.99
47 Roy Jones 6.42
55 Muhammad Ali 8.68
Read all articles and exclusive interviews by Phil Jay. Learn more about the author, experienced boxing writer, and World Boxing News Editor since 2010. Follow on Twitter @PhilJWBN.
