I think it comes down to either Tito, Gomez, or Rosario. Who was the best puncher of the three? Remember, strictly puncher. Gomez was easily the best overall of the three. Two dark horses being Wilfredo Vasquez and Victor Callejas.
Wilfredo Gomez... 32 Wins (ALL By KO) Heading into the Salvador Sanchez Fight...Loses Badly, Yet KO's 8 Consecutive Opponents After That... As X Stated, it's a 3-Horse Race btwn Gomez, Felix Trinidad and Edwin Rosario, But the Numbers DON'T Lie in Gomez's Case...When REED was Growing Up, the SAFEST Bet in All of Boxing was "Gomez by KO"... In Terms of SHEER KO Probability, it was Tyson BEFORE Tyson...The KO BUZZ Deontay Wilder Started to Garner DOESN'T Even Scratch the Surface... REED
Those guys were all very solid boxers that could hit.... Gomez impresses me much less than he does other people. That may be a reaction to the fights that I have seen- years ago I purchased a dozen, randomly, on the recommendation of someone else- and I was less than impressed. The courage and determination he showed against Pintor is admirable and the fight with Zarate was impressive. When Zarate says that he came into the fight with a fever, I tend to believe it because I can't, to this day, understand how Gomez won. The biggest puncher is either Trinidad or Gomez and I lean Trinidad. So much have what I have seen, I just cannot put Gomez on a pedestal.
I think class and combination punching is what got a lot of Gomez's KOs, not just strictly power. He was a massive puncher, but I don't see him as the same sort of one punch guy that Rosario was. I'd actually go as far as to say that in terms of just one punch power, Callejas' left hook is more impressive than any one of Gomez's shots.
Agreed. Gomez was so much more offensively talented than Rosario and Trinidad, that got him the KOs. Gomez was also a more dedicated body puncher than Tito or Rosario. Having said that, make no mistake, Gomez COULD end a fight with one punch. His right hand was devastating. So was his hook, but his right hand was his money punch. For pure one punch power though, it's gotta be either Rosario's right cross or Trinidad's left hook.
Exactly. Dont let his fall at featherweight detract from his 122 dominance. He's a solid favorite over any super bantamweight in history.
Bazooka Gomez is my all time favorite boxer. I collected every newspaper and magazine article on him back in the 70s. His record of 17 consecutive KO title defenses at 122 lbs hasn't been broken or equaled. Being a huge Gomez fan made possible that I contributed to the latest Gomez biography book, "A Fire Burns Within: The Miraculous Journey of Wilfredo Gomez". All that said, IMO the biggest Puerto Rican puncher was the late Edwin "El Chapo" Rosario. Chapo had heavier hands than Gomez or Trinidad. Keep in mind that he was the reason Camacho turned into a safety-first boxer after he tasted Rosario's power. His destruction of Livingstone Bramble was probably his most impressive KO victory...or at least the one I enjoyed the most. Too bad he was a drug addict and a total scumbag outside the ring.