Would you say George Foreman had stronger but slower punches than Mike Tyson?

I saw a interview with holyfield where they asked him who hit harder, he danced around the question a little bit but finally said foreman was the hardest hitter he ever fought.

 

I once read that Foreman's power was like a railroad tie being swung from a chain slamming into you. Shavers power was described as a stick of dynamite exploding on your skull. Tysons probably 2 doors down from these guys.

 

Which is strange considering he was to be able to take several flush shots from Foreman in their bout without looking in any serious trouble of being knocked down or out whereas Riddick Bowe had him staggering all around the ring in their first fight and did manage to stop him in their third fight.

 

George knocked Evander out of range with his punches and visibly knocked him a few steps over with his overhand right. Bowe managed to land his heavy punches quicker. George landed some heavy shots, but they were slow and Evander saw them coming soon enough to prepare for impact, which took away from how much it hurt him. Evander has consistently said Foreman was the strongest fighter he faced and that he hit the hardest. Most specifcally, citing being hit in the mouth, holding on, and being sure his teeth were knocked out.

 

Additionally,

Chuvalo said frazuer and quarry were like a car going 100 and foreman was a hig truck going 50

"George Foreman was very heavy handed and there was a different feel to his shots. The best analogy would be Joe Frazier and Jerry Quarry hitting you was equivalent to being struck by a car at 100 mph, but when George landed it was like being hit by a mac truck at 50 mph. There was more weight in his punches."

Interestingly larry Holmes made a very similar word for word comparison to the 2 biggest hitters he faced:

Larry Holmes: "Earnie hit me harder than any other fighter, including Mike Tyson. ... Being hit by Mike Tyson was like getting hit by a speeding Ferrari. Being hit by Earnie Shavers was like being hit by a Mack Truck."

Charles Jay: WAS HE A MUCH HARDER HITTER THAN TYSON?

Larry Holmes: Tyson is a sharp puncher. Earnie Shavers was a PUNISHING puncher. There was a difference between the two. Because when Shavers hit you, you feel it all the way through your body.


Logical conclusion:

Frazier and Tyson had less raw power but more snap, speed and sharpness. Foreman and shavers had less speed but more weight and sheer force.

 

To answer the original post, yes, I believe Foreman hit harder punch for punch than Mike Tyson. Pretty much the only person to be rated higher on a common opponent basis than Foreman is Earnie Shavers. Outside of people who faced Shavers, people who fought Foreman tend to rate him as hardest puncher they've been in the ring with. Tyson, on the other hand, tends to have his speed and sharpness rated moreso than his power by the higher level opponents he's faced. Holmes, in the dressing room following his fight with Tyson, stated that Shavers and Cooney hit much harder than Tyson, but that Tyson was the sharpest puncher he'd been in the ring with.

Foreman and Tyson had completely different types of power. Tyson was the better overall puncher, but Foreman was the harder puncher.

 

Exactly. There are different types of power. Foreman was extremely heavy handed. Tyson was an extremely sharp puncher. Tough to explain different types of power with words without physically conveying the different feel of punches, but there are absolutely different types of punchers. Sharp, heavy, stinging, straight up lights out, etc. Those differences are why I'm a firm believer punchers are born, not made.

 

That is not true. Chuck Wepner, Scrap Iron Johnson, and Muhammad Ali all said Sonny Liston hit harder than Foreman.

 

I stand corrected then. It should be noted that Wepner and Johnson fought a very young Foreman, though. A 19/20 year old in the first year or two of their career is rarely punching as hard or as strong as they are in their mid to late 20s, though. Tyson is an exception to that. I don't remember seeing Ali compare Foreman and Liston in power. Only in stating Shavers was the hardest puncher he faced.

 

And then some People are hybrids who combine 2 or more punching styles. Some can be heavy and explosive, others sharp and stinging. Some are feather fisted lol.

The most painful, jarring punch i ever felt was when me and my friend got into a heated argument. The guy is very skinny and bony but he clipped my jaw suddenly with this very sharp and stinging punch. It didn't knock me out or even knock me down but it was soooo painful. Felt like my nerves were on fire and i felt a ringing sensation in the bone. Definitely a hybrid of fast/sharp/stinging type. Hard to explain without actually demonstrating it or feeling it yourself.

 

For the bank I'll go with this answer!

 

Apples and oranges..both are a rough day at the office

 

This is all very well said.