Top 15 Chins at Heavyweight

Discussion in 'World Boxing Forum' started by PopPellegrino, Sep 1, 2026 at 9:25 PM.


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  1. PopPellegrino

    PopPellegrino Active Member Full Member

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    My personal list:

    15. Joe Bugner
    14. Fabio Wardley (hard to tell)
    13. Riddick Bowe
    12. Joe Joyce
    11. George Chuvalo
    10. Nikolai Valuev
    9. Muhammad Ali
    8. David Tua
    7. Ross Puritty
    6. Filip Hrgovic (I think he is tied with Mercer, but his career is still currently ongoing.)
    5. Ray Mercer (pre-neck injury)
    4. Marion Wilson
    3. Vitali Klitschko
    2. George Foreman (comeback)
    1. Oliver McCall
     
    PopPellegrino, Sep 1, 2026 at 9:25 PM
    PopPellegrino, Sep 1, 2026 at 9:25 PM
    #1
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  2. catchwtboxing

    catchwtboxing Loyal Member

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    No Tex Cobb?

    Oleksandr Usyk?

    Marciano only down twice.

    Holyfield?

    Jim Jefferies deserves a shout.

    Why Bowe? He almost never fought punchers.
     
    Last edited: Sep 1, 2026 at 9:35 PM
    catchwtboxing, Sep 1, 2026 at 9:28 PM
    catchwtboxing, Sep 1, 2026 at 9:28 PM
    #2
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  3. Joeywill

    Joeywill Boxing Addict Full Member

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    Where's Max Baer
     
    Joeywill, Sep 1, 2026 at 9:34 PM
    Joeywill, Sep 1, 2026 at 9:34 PM
    #3
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  4. The Professor

    The Professor Socialist Ring Leader Staff Member

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    Chuvalo only at 11????
     
    The Professor, Sep 1, 2026 at 9:40 PM
    The Professor, Sep 1, 2026 at 9:40 PM
    #4
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  5. ikrasevic

    ikrasevic War for Souls Full Member

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    Mount Rushmore of HW chins | Boxing News 24 Fan Forum
    Randall Cobb?
    Larry Holmes?
    Joe Joyce out
    George Chuvalo No.2
     
    ikrasevic, Sep 1, 2026 at 9:42 PM
    ikrasevic, Sep 1, 2026 at 9:42 PM
    #5
  6. HistoryZero26

    HistoryZero26 Boxing Addict Full Member

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    Doing a top 20. In chronological order. Primary factor is the amount of times stopped and how many fights they had where they were at risk of being stopped.

    Langford
    Jeanette
    Gibbons
    Miske
    Dempsey
    Tunney
    Loughran
    Uzcudchin
    Risko
    Braddock
    John Henry Lewis
    Pastor
    Baksi
    Chinvalo
    Ali
    Jimmy Young
    Foreman
    Holyfield
    Toney
    Valuev

    Notes
    Louis would be included if chin doesn't include getting knocked down.
    If you look past the fact Schaaf was killed part of why he was killed is he was too tough for his own good.
    Early fighters dominate this list because it's easier to tell whose chin is good when there's more fights they could have been knocked out.
     
    HistoryZero26, Sep 1, 2026 at 10:21 PM
    HistoryZero26, Sep 1, 2026 at 10:21 PM
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  7. Despertador

    Despertador New Member Full Member

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    McCall certainly had a great chin, but saying he was Numero Uno of all time would be unfair to other heavyweights. In fact it's simply impossible to say. In his whole carreer McCall faced only 3 really big punchers - Lewis, Bruno and Davarryl Williamson. But Williamson had a tendency of fighting very cautious because of his glass jaw. I think Ray Mercer, for example, has faced more great punchers throughout his career. Morrison, Lewis, Cooper, Wlad, Witherspoon also had a hell of a right hand. Lewis landed everything and kicthen sink on him and couldn't put a dent on his chin. The same goes for Morrison, who was enormous puncher. Cooper knocked down granite chinned Holyfield but couldn't hurt Mercer. Wlad was probably the hardest puncher of them all and yes, he knocked down Mercer and eventually stopped him, but Mercer was 41 in that fight and still took tons of punishment before getting stopped. So, I would say, Mercer had even more proven chin than McCall since he faced far more huge punchers
     
    Last edited: Sep 2, 2026 at 12:54 AM
    Despertador, Sep 2, 2026 at 12:34 AM
    Despertador, Sep 2, 2026 at 12:34 AM
    #7
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  8. Noel857

    Noel857 I Am Duran

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    It is beyond my capability to do a top 15 but i do know i would have Chuvalo in the top 5
     
    Noel857, Sep 2, 2026 at 1:14 AM
    Noel857, Sep 2, 2026 at 1:14 AM
    #8
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  9. LoveThis

    LoveThis Sweet Science Full Member

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    Tyson had a really good chin. Looking at his later career and seeing the douglas ko gives the wrong Impression.

    Also to me vitali is above foreman. Foreman was taking punishment by holyfield, but vitali was taking everything lewis had including the uppercut. Also vitali was fighting more offensively, giving more options to be countered. Foreman wasn't as offensive, still more mindful of defense while attacking, managing everything from stamina to defense well and in balance. I think it is easier to take punches with that foundation.

    Vitali just had a crazy ability to take punches.
     
    LoveThis, Sep 2, 2026 at 2:17 AM
    LoveThis, Sep 2, 2026 at 2:17 AM
    #9
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  10. Reuben Jones

    Reuben Jones Member Full Member

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    Andy Ruiz, all 15 of them.
     
    Reuben Jones, Sep 2, 2026 at 2:46 AM
    Reuben Jones, Sep 2, 2026 at 2:46 AM
    #10
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  11. Serge

    Serge Ginger Dracula Staff Member

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    No one mentioned Wach

    Marion Wilson is super manly

    How come people say 38-48 y/o Foreman had a better chin than 20-28 y/o Foreman?

    How is that even possible?

    Because 38-48 y/o Foreman was 20-40lbs heavier than 20-28 y/o Foreman was

    So size matters

    Hence why when fighters move up in weight they typically get bigger

    James Toney got dropped at MW by Reginald Johnson but ate the best shots of Samuel Peter, Holyfield, Rahman etc.

    If the Toney who fought Johnson fought those guys he would've got his noggin knocked into the Stratosphere

    Toney had a great chin

    So if size matters, and it matters big

    A natural CW like Usyk eating shots from the likes of way bigger and naturally bigger career HW giants like AJ, Dubois, Belly, Chisora, and even Rico is far more impressive than natural HWs eating shots off same sized or smaller natural HWs

    A chimpanzee eating the shots off a gorilla or an Orangutan is more impressive than a gorilla or an Orangutan eating them

    So you can have CWs who have great chins like Usyk and Holyfield for example who can take the power of much or way bigger natural career HWs

    You can also have CWs like say Haye who hit like big punching big HWs

    But these things are not the norm or are anomalies

    The gorilla and orangutan are stronger, tougher and more powerful than the chimpanzee

    People often cite number of punchers fought too

    Mavrovic only really fought one puncher but it was a way bigger ATG puncher on Lewis who threw the kitchen sink on him and Mavrovic displayed an iron chin in that fight

    But Mavrovic was knocked out x 2 in the amateurs so that goes against him

    Lewis was a SHW sized HW who was usually the bigger or much bigger man

    Vitali too albeit iron chinned for sure

    Everyone Valuev fought was much smaller than him

    Even Ali was usually the bigger or much bigger man. Certainly Iron chinned though

    Hrgovic is a big guy too but all the punchers he's fought as a pro are his size, bigger or way bigger

    Big Bang
    Dubois
    Moses
    Adeleye

    Even Big Joe Joyce whilst not a one punch guy has a KO 93% and is a 270-280lb man mountain these days

    But Hrgovic actually turned pro at 223lbs and IIRC has weighed in the 220s for like 6 of his 22 fights and like under 235 like 9 times and he always had a great set of whiskers even as a teenager facing grown men and bigger or much bigger fighters

    Never dropped in the amateurs, had like 30 fights in the WSB over 5 rounds and he was 18 when he first fought in the WSB

    Also, he's never been down in sparring despite sharing a ring and going to war with murderous and massive punchers like Wlad, The Dosser, Haye, Dubois, Fabio among others

    David Haye on sparring Hrgovic and Hrgovic's chin

    This content is protected
     
    Serge, Sep 2, 2026 at 2:51 AM
    Serge, Sep 2, 2026 at 2:51 AM
    #11
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  12. OddR

    OddR Boxing Addict Full Member

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    There might be several journeymen who didn't have the talent or skill to make it but had a iron chin.

    Anyway what about Larry Holmes as a OM?. Dropped 7/8 times in 75 fights at heavyweight fighting till 52 is pretty solid stuff and Holmes was hit plenty.
     
    OddR, Sep 2, 2026 at 2:56 AM
    OddR, Sep 2, 2026 at 2:56 AM
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  13. Dynamicpuncher

    Dynamicpuncher Obsessed with Boxing Full Member

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    My top 15 in no order.

    Oliver McCall
    Marion Wilson
    George Chuvalo
    Muhammad Ali
    Larry Holmes
    George Foreman
    Vitali Klitschko
    David Tua
    Tex Cobb
    Evander Holyfield
    Ray Mercer
    Filip Hrgovic
    Rocky Marciano
    Oleksandr Usyk
    Jimmy Young

    Honourable mentions.

    Nikolai Valuev, Pinklon Thomas, Jim Jefferies, Riddick Bowe, Mike Tyson, Joe Joyce.
     
    Dynamicpuncher, Sep 2, 2026 at 5:23 AM
    Dynamicpuncher, Sep 2, 2026 at 5:23 AM
    #13
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  14. lof_87

    lof_87 New Member Full Member

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    Mariusz Wach
    Kubrat Pulev
     
    lof_87, Sep 2, 2026 at 5:29 AM
    lof_87, Sep 2, 2026 at 5:29 AM
    #14
  15. OddR

    OddR Boxing Addict Full Member

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    Wach's chin was great before it went.
     
    OddR, Sep 2, 2026 at 5:43 AM
    OddR, Sep 2, 2026 at 5:43 AM
    #15
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