Well, that crazy left hook definitely had one punch knockout potential at any given time! It was a devastating weapon inside the ropes.
But those different punches really weren′t that vicious, especially compared to some bombs thrown by some other guys in heavyweight history...
Let′s say if Earnie Shavers and George Foreman are the 10 in such a scale, then I′d put Smokin′ Joe on about 7 or at best 8 I think. So I agree with you.
Kind regards from germany!;)
Joe Frazier was a notch below some of the greatest punchers of all time. His power punches were his right hand to the body and left hook anywhere it lands. He had many one punch knockouts. Dave Zegilwitz, Bob Foster, Buster Mathis. As a matter of fact his first 11 fights were KO's not TKO's KO's. He has stoppages of two of the most durable fighters of all time. George Chuvalo and Jerry Quarry (twice).
The thing with Frazier was that he was shaper puncher. His punches cut and bruised whereas a fighter like George Foreman was a clubbing/thudding puncher.
I would rate Smokin Joe Frazier's punching power at a 9. True he went 15 rounds with a combacking Muhammad Ali in 1971 and Oscar Bonavena, twice, 10 round distance in 1966, and 15 rounds in Dec 1968, but both of these fighters had chins of iron. Frazier usually forced you into phone booth warfare. On March 4, 1968, at Madison Square Garden, he fought Buster Mathis, for Massachusetts, New York, Pennsylvania, and quite a few other states World Heavyweight Championship recognition as Muhammad Ali was out of the picture, due to his legal problems with his draft evasion conviction. During the Mathis fight, the referee heard Mathis crying and pleading with him to make Joe step back, Frazier subsequently stopped Buster in the 11th round to lay claim to a part of the title. Frazier would not let you breath, he suffocated you with his bobbing and weaving style to position an opponent for his lethal left hook. Joe was also a converted southpaw. His opponents any day were so much better than the James Quick Tillis and Jose Ribalta's, the fighters that Iron Mike Tyson destroyed. Frazier's opponents were not ham and eggers, but experienced pro's Joe was not overly protected by Yank Durham and Eddie Futch, like Cus D Amato overly protected Tyson..
On a scale of 1-10 with guys like Liston, Foreman and Shavers being 10, and guys like Lennox Lewis, Vitali Klitschko being 8 I would put Frazier in the same category as Tyson or Tua at 9. Joe was pretty easy to figure out, he was going to close the distance and bang with you, and his left hook was about as decisive a punch as any in history, usually it was fatal to trade punches with Frazier.
I would say a 8 which is more than enough lol.
was he a knockout puncher? or more of a accumulation puncher how would you rate his power on a scale of 10? i say 7 or 7.5 max
