Top 5 Heavyweight Handspeed all time!!

We don't usually focus on the heavyweight division when discussing handspeed and so I thought this would be an interesting topic.

Inspired by Ramonza, who recently mentioned on the MM forum (which he rules with an Iron Fist) that in his opinion Floyd Patterson has the fastest hands of any heavyweight in history, including Ali.

Ramonza..I agree with you.

1. Floyd Patterson
2. Muhammad Ali
3. Mike Tyson
4. Joe Louis
5. Jersey Joe Walcott

The Sly One has Spoken!!

 

Herbie Hide.

 

Where would he be in your top 5? Good catch btw...

 

Patterson would top my list. Watching his second fight with Johansson, those combinations were just super-natural --- even Ali couldn't quite match that glovespeed, IMO.

Ali is a natural second, at worst. The next two best high-profile examples are Louis & Tyson --- these two, I found difficult to split. I suppose Louis' punches were shorter, & therefore found the target a fraction quicker, but as a direct function of handspeed, you couldn't split them...or at least, I couldn't.

Fifth is difficult to place --- Walcott had really sneakily-quick shots. Tunney & Dempsey had very fast, snappy gloves. Even at HW, Charles retained speedy hands.

Of course, there have been several less-famous fighters with genuinely great handspeed. Herbie Hide was one. Mitch Green, another.

 

Champions or everybody? And does punching power have anything to do with this?

If not, Chris Byrd deserves to be there after the first three. Prime Dokes was quick too as was Hide. Also if we count single punches, David Haye's right hand is among the quickest, but looking combinations and overall he is not particularly fast

 

Chris Byrd didn't have particularly fast hands. Don't be fooled by guys that feint and act all cute in the ring. Doesn't automatically mean that are fast.

Dokes and Hide were fast though..I'll give you that. Tony Tubbs was also pretty quick handed.

 

Tony Tubbs had very fast hands for a channel swimmer.

 

Top 3 somewhere.

 

Tubbs had REALLY fast hands. In fact, either Larry or Jim brought it up during the Tyson fight that it was particularly surprising---given the shape of Tubbs' body.

 

Roy Jones is #1.

 

Herbie Hide
Corrie Sanders
Mitch Green
Nikolai Valuev
Rocky Marciano

 

In all honesty.... I'd have Tyson at 1.

 

You have him #1 out of greatest human beings too.

 

He's up there.::

 

I think Terry Norris had amazing hand speed, faster than Jones

 

Terry Norris
Roy Jones
Hector Camacho
Manny Pacquiao
Ray Leonard

 

what a dumb shit

 

Wow.

 

It's painful.

 

This is your top 5 HEAVYWEIGHT list?

 

Cupey took time breaking down the Pacquiao/Margarito fight and came to the conclusion that Margarito would win. :atu:

 

What about fast Eddie Chambers? Corrie Sanders is a good pick. Holmes was fast too, faster than Walcott in my opinoin.

 

The Jones that fought Ruiz was among the fastest men to ever fight at heavyweight, no doubt. But I don't think one fight at the weight should apply.

 

LOL. I didn't see the word "heavyweight"

Tyson
Ali
Gerrie Coetzee
Floyd Patterson
Ken Norton

 

Agreed.

 

:dunno:

 

Faster than Walcott? You're mad.

 

I think Walcott's hands were faster than Holmes', myself.

 

Ali was faster than a heavyweight Jones, IMO. The extra weight definitely slowed Roy down a tad.

 

Among the heavier punchers, Dempsey had quite quick hands.