What was the hardest punch Ali ever took?

He was on the verge of being KO`d but had tons of durability left, Ali recouprative powers were amazing, but he was badly stunned and would have been finished, it was just a situation, he was sloppy and not ready.

 

I've always heard that the genius Dundee hid the illegal smelling salts inside Ali's glove. So when Dundee ripped open the glove to get them he got bonus time

 

Extra time in the form of 3 or 4 seconds.
They never removed the glove it’s all on film.
That myth was debunked a long time ago.

 

Ali is on film in a recent documentary saying he was much more dazed in the 11th rd against Frazier than in the 15th rd He explains this by sayings he didn't see the punch coming in the 11th round but he saw the hook that put him down but just couldn't avoid it.

 

Round 11 against Smoke IMO

 

I've never particularly looked into it. How do they know the length of time?

 

The fight was shown in its entirety ,including the time out for the glove to be replaced which it was not.

 

Thank you Cecil. The torn glove and someone going to get a replacement and that giving Ali extra time is a myth. Watch the fight. It plain didn't happen. The time between the rounds is just over a minute.

Biggest myth in boxing outside Foreman lifting Frazier off his feet with an uppercut. You can see that that's a myth on the video too. George lands on Joe who sags to the ropes then sort of jumps of his own volition to the floor. It looks like a hell of a shot, and I don't doubt that it caused Joe an awful lot of damage, but film of the fight irrefutably proves it didn't lift him off his feet. Yet still people persist with the myth and I don't know why they bother. George's performance was awesome that night - and I say "awesome" as an older man, so in its original context - and doesn't need the superfluous hyperbole.

Sorry for the rant, folks. It's the manopause making me tetchy.

In answer to the OP's question, Ali said Shavers hit him hardest and Ali was in a good position to judge so I'll go with that. But the hardest punch and the most damaging can be two different things entirely and, in this case, I think they are. I never saw Ali look so dazed and wobbly as he was after Cooper chinned him. He was greener, he was throwing his own hook, he didn't brace himself for or ride with Cooper's hook; there are various mitigating factors for the damage it caused beyond how hard the punch was.

My feeling is that Earnie hit him hardest but Henry, for whatever reason(s) wreaked most havoc with a single shot.

 

Shavers followed by Foreman.

 

I actually saw a TV show from the late 70s that had Ali answering viewers questions and he said unequivocally that Shavers hit hardest. Larry said the same thing.

 

Frazier had a better left hook but they did not call it’s Henry’ hammer for nothing and he landed it about as good as you can.

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Henry was a converted leftie, he certainly knew how to throw it, the more you look at it Ali did very well to get up from that!

 

Against Cooper. Ali was out, and needed smelling salts to revive him. He stood up early between rounds because he had "gone".
And as others have said, the 11th round left hook from Frazier following a body shot. He recovered quite well though. Not sure if he would have from the Cooper knockdown if it was earlier in the round, though.

 

Hi mate, that was the closest Ali ever came to being stopped in my opinion and the only time I ever saw him on rubbery legs for a period of time. Dundee thought Ali was finished and always said he couldnt believe how Ali came back after that round.

Cheers All.