Rate Ron Lyle's power against ATG heavy handed heavyweights

[$Bullsfam$]

Alot of people want to say Shavers and Foreman, but I think you gotta put Lyle up there. I think he hit harder then Lennox. Look at the way he VIOLENTLY dropped George Foreman. I ain't never seen somebody hurt Foreman like that before haha. Ali got him tired first, Lyle brutally almost KO'd him. Modern day refs probably would have stopped that fight multiple times haha.

One of the most violent fights ever. One of my favorites. The man is one of the hardest punchers to ever live. Maybe not the most successful, but if the man connected it hurt ya!

[BigStereotype]

No doubt he's up there. He could fucking crack.

[StarshipTrooper]

Alot of people want to say Shavers and Foreman, but I think you gotta put Lyle up there. I think he hit harder then Lennox. Look at the way he VIOLENTLY dropped George Foreman. I ain't never seen somebody hurt Foreman like that before haha. Ali got him tired first, Lyle brutally almost KO'd him. Modern day refs probably would have stopped that fight multiple times haha.

One of the most violent fights ever. One of my favorites. The man is one of the hardest punchers to ever live. Maybe not the most successful, but if the man connected it hurt ya!

I wouldn't put him on the level of Shavers or Foreman but there's no doubt about it: The man had power to spare.

Poet

[Wild Blue Yonda]

Foreman said Lyle hit him harder than anyone else (and Frazier landed), though he much later fought Cooney and also said he was the biggest puncher he endured.

Whatever the case, Cooney visibly wounded Foreman, but Lyle nearly killed him. Always wondered what wouldve happened had the bell for the end of the fourth not sounded when it did. Foreman was in mighty bad shape.

Lyle has a strangely low KO ratio for such a natural puncher, but then, he fought in a deep era and could box a bit when he wanted, too (such as the Ali fight).

[JAB5239]

Foreman said Lyle hit him harder than anyone else (and Frazier landed), though he much later fought Cooney and also said he was the biggest puncher he endured.

Whatever the case, Cooney visibly wounded Foreman, but Lyle nearly killed him. Always wondered what wouldve happened had the bell for the end of the fourth not sounded when it did. Foreman was in mighty bad shape.

Lyle has a strangely low KO ratio for such a natural puncher, but then, he fought in a deep era and could box a bit when he wanted, too (such as the Ali fight).

We he stepped up his comp his power became much more ineffective.

[nomadman]

I think Lyle is pretty underrated as a power puncher, or rather I should say that he tends to be overlooked when discussions about who hits the hardest invariably come up. I'm not sure why, maybe because he never really had any signature KOs over great opponents; off the top of my head only Mathis and Shavers might be considered name opponents, but then again Shavers wasn't that hard to KO and that was a life and death battle with Lyle nearly laid out on the canvas. At any rate, Lyle was a very hard puncher, and a dangerous fight for anyone at that time. Against Foreman he was literally launching himself at George at the start of every round, and was really putting his weight into his shots. I lost count of the times he had Foreman out on his feet and nearly out of the fight.

Saying that, I still have a hard time imagining Lyle as being the hardest puncher Foreman ever faced. IMO, and taking all their fights into account, Cooney, Morrison, and Briggs were the harder hitters, despite not actually knocking him down. Why is a little controversial. I actually believe that the older Foreman was more resilient to damage than the younger one, due to having a much thicker neck and mass around his shoulders cushioning the blows. He also learnt to take the edge off punches with his mummy-like arms out defensive style where the young Foreman would take them much flusher. In all other physical aspects of course, the younger Foreman trumps him, but, I don't know, the older Foreman just seemed to have an indestructability about him which I don't think a perceived weakness of eras can entirely account for.

**Side point, but I've always thought Lyle had an unusual body for a puncher. He was extremely developed in the upper body, his shoulders and traps were enormous in comparison to the rest of him, especially his relatively thin legs. Sorta like Lamon Brewster, another underrated puncher. It's an odd physique, maybe ok for an amateur bodybuilding compeition in the 70s but not exactly prime boxer material. I think it would be interesting to analyse the effect his best punches had on opponents throughout a fight, since I'm a big proponent in believing that there's more than one way to deliver a stopping blow, and a fighter might find himself having the perfect punching style to seriously hurt a normally iron-chinned fighter.

[barfly12]

I saw Lyle fight a few times

He had good power but was not in Foreman's or Shaver's league. He hit Bonavena with everything and could not shake him (remember Ali knocked Oscar out). He was a bit ponderous and slow handed. I would rate Liston a harder puncher.

[Scott9945]

Lyle was a powerful man, but he lacked the speed or snap on his punches that other big punching heavyweights have/had.

[IronDanHamza]

Ron Lyle is an underrated fighter in general.

Alot of fans of the newer era's haven't the nearest clue who he is.

Like the consenus is in this thread, I don't think he has Foreman or Shavers power.

But Lyle can sure as hell throw a brutal punch.

[Barn]

Ron Lyle is an underrated fighter in general.

Alot of fans of the newer era's haven't the nearest clue who he is.

Like the consenus is in this thread, I don't think he has Foreman or Shavers power.

But Lyle can sure as hell throw a brutal punch.

How do you feel he does from 2000>Present.

I'm sure he could pick up a title.