The Ring's All Time Best European Heavyweights...

Including Fitzsimmons makes for a fairly impressive top 5

Lewis
Fitzsimmons
Schmeling
Vitali Klitschko
Wlad Klitschko

It also takes away all that "gave some American a half decent fight" patronizing shite.

 

Ingemar Johanssen was a good fighter and undisputed heavyweight champion, remember he knocked the hell out of Floyd Patterson as bad Sonny Liston did to win that title, even in the rematches he had FLoyd down and hurt. Joe Bugner had a good career too considering he was fighting in a strong era. Muhammed Ali and Joe Frazier deserve more than to be called "some american" no matter what anyone says. You can add them two to the list straight away.


Lewis
Fitzsimmons
Schmeling
Vitali Klitschko
Wlad Klitschko
Johansson
Bugner

After that it starts to get thin. Frank Bruno was a solid fighter, and let's face it he'd kill anyone like Henry Cooper, Karl Mildenberger or Tommy Farr head to head so despite their achevements I have a hard time giving them much of a chance against Big Frank.

Beyond the top 10 Europe's heavyweight history starts to get dire. Continental europe has hardly produced any word-class heavyweights, most of the guys outside that top 8 or 9 worth a damn are British. It's only in the last 3 or 4 years, since the end of the soviet bloc in eastern europe that the good fighters have started to emerge.

Tells you a lot about how thoroughly the yanks dominated heavyweight boxing.

 

bugner? High level but Bruno did more.