Can you make a case for David Lemieux as the hardest puncher in middleweight history?

the lad could certainly crack - his one punch KO of Curtis Stevens was a stunner.

Power wise he is certainly up there with some of the heavy hitters

 

I think it's impossible to truly determine a hardest puncher. What isn't impossible is most effective puncher which means so much more that sheer power. Archie Moore for example is nowhere the hardest punching Light-Heavyweight but he certainly was about the best at putting people to sleep due to his combination of power, timing and experience.

Regarding Lemieux. He certainly had a brutal left hook just like guys like Maseleno Masoe and Arthur Abraham but none of those guys were as effective as guys like GGG or even Hagler. Sheer punching power is only part of the equation.

 

Not on his actual accomplishments, but often things like "the hardest puncher" or "the fastest hands" don't go to the most accomplished or overall skilled boxer. There is no way to really know, I'd say if you trust your intelligence, you'll have a list of fighters you think are severely underrated in power and among the greatest ever.

Take Jin Sasaki. Probably nobody will remember him at all 30 years from now. I think he is one of the pound for pound hardest punchers on Earth at the moment:

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Am I wrong? He will probably never KO a notable opponent. But watch him.

 

I cannot make that case.

 

I suspect, at they very least relative to their era, 160lbs versions of Fitzsimmons and Langford had more raw power. Maybe Ketchel too.

In absolute terms, I suspect Julian Jackson, Gerarld McClellan and Nigel Benn, hit harder.

I'm not even convinced Lemeiux hit harder than the likes of Eduardo Lausse, Eugene Hart or Rubin Carter. He was certainly a huge puncher, though.

 

He's a hard hitter, that's for sure. But I don't think his power is otherworldly, and it didn't really follow him up to 168 either. I remember seeing his split decision fight with Maksym Bursak back in 2019, the dude should've stayed at 160.

 

It's not often someone mentions a boxer I'd never heard of before, but you've done so here. He looks heavy handed. A cursory glance at his record makes me suspect you're right that he won't be anymore a household name in 30 years time than he is today.

 

Hmm ... I don't think he hit harder than Julian Jackson and Gerald McClellan, guys like that.

Jackson hit guys and their souls seemed to leave their bodies (Buster Drayton, Herol Graham, etc.)

 

No certainly not when a fighter named Julian Jackson existed.

 

No.

 

Marcos Reyes took everything off him for the full fight distance. Took hook after hook after hook and never went down. Lemiuex did hit sickeningly hard though so maybe top 5

 

Level of competition has so much to do with it, guys that can take the brunt off the blow by moving instinctually.

Having said that, Lemieux could crack! As mentioned earlier, probably top 5-ish.