James Jeffries vs Deontay Wilder

People who have actually punched by him say he's an enormous puncher. Tyson Fury, David Haye, Luis Ortiz, Malik Scott, Eric Molina, all of these guys rate his power enormous. "10/10" according to Haye, for example.

They'd know.

 

Before one of their fights i'd presume?

Fury now describes Wilder as the hardest puncher he knows of. But yeah, toss out Fury, he's contradicted himself.

Haye: "“I’ve sparred with him many times. He’s got a very, very, very, hard right hand and it’s an equaliser. His punch power is 10 out of 10, that’s it. I don’t know how else to say it. You know when you’ve been hit by him. It’s very different to anyone else. He is the hardest puncher I’ve ever been in the ring with."

Audley Harrison: "With Wilder, it’s not just that power but it’s the explosive speed that he has that can just send you to sleep. He can knock you out with the jab and with the right hand.”

Luis Ortiz: "His right hand is more powerful then one could imagine."

Malik Scott: "When we fought he caught me on the temple with a left hook and then a right down the middle. People say they weren’t clean hits but he has that power to put you on the ground."

Johann Duhaupas: "There’s no question he is the hardest puncher in the division."

Gerald Washington: "I’m not going to say he’s the hardest puncher ever or anything like that but he has crack in his shots. And he does it with both hands. They say watch out for his right hand but he almost took Tyson Fury’s head off with a left hook. When he throws with all his might, when he lets them go, he’s special.”

Eric Molina: "Wilder could knock out a bull if he hit it in the head...if he touches anybody with that right hand, on any part of the head, they’re going to dance or go down and go to sleep. It is what it is."

And Fury, just for completeness: "Deontay Wilder is the most fiercest puncher in boxing history, in heavyweight division history. And I saw that and I felt it."

It's reasonable to dispute his skills (though a lot of fighters have a lot to say about how unexpected, unorthodox, and difficult to box he is, too) but disputing his power is silly.

 

Yeah, he's very obviously a very hard puncher. I'd say that he's clearly the hardest puncher in a hard-punching division of very big men, but that's unfortunately going to be disputed for various reasons.