Expert: Lian Shoemake - 12/5/2006

Question
Was Rocky Marciano one of the hardest puchers in boxing and who would win between him and  Mike tyson. Also would he of been able to beat Mohammed Ail

Answer
Hi Bob,

Thanks for the questions.
Since these are all subjective, I'll preface my response by saying that these are only my opinions, and others will have different opinions!

Having said that, I think it's clear that Marciano was a very hard puncher, and extremely strong in the ring, despite his small size. A fight between a prime Marciano and a prime Tyson would be interesting, since neither really ever fought an opponent like the other in his repsective career. I think Marciano would have had major trouble with the size, speed and power of a young Tyson, but if he could have survived the early rounds, Marciano's stamina, strength and relentless work rate might have broken down Tyson as Douglas and Holyfield did in those fights.

I think a fight with Ali would have been much more problematic for Marciano, since Ali had the size, speed and natural athletic ability to probably comfortably outbox Marciano without having to engage him. I think the size and skill differential would have resulted in a clear win for Ali.

What do you think?

Thanks again for writing, Bob!

Regards,
Lian