A former rival of Evander Holyfield and Wladimir Klitschko has revealed which of the legendary heavyweight duo punched the hardest.
Holyfield, known as ‘The Real Deal’, became the first fighter in the history of the sport to capture the undisputed championship at both cruiserweight and heavyweight. The American great racked up victories over the likes of Mike Tyson, Riddick Bowe and George Foreman during his professional career.
As for Klitschko, the Ukrainian icon had an exceptional professional boxing career of his own, reigning as the unified world heavyweight champion for seven years between 2008 and 2015, defeating the likes of Hasim Rahman, Kubrat Pulev and David Haye along the way.
One man who shared the ring with both Holyfield and Klitschko during his tenure is two-time world heavyweight champion Chris Byrd, who actually defeated Wladimir Klitschko’s brother Vitali in a shock upset back in 2000.
In a feature with The Ring Magazine, Byrd overlooked Holyfield and Klitschko when naming his hardest punching opponent, who he revealed to be countryman DaVarryl Williamson.
“He didn’t hit me, but I know who had the best power. People are gonna say, ‘Why DaVarryl?’ He had a ‘Touch of Sleep’, he had Deontay Wilder-type power.
“If he had been 6-foot-7, he’d have been running things like Wilder. To the media, he’s very underrated, but to the boxers, everybody knows if you get in the ring with him and he touches you, you’re going to sleep. With me, if you hit me right, I’m a middleweight, you’re supposed to knock me out. I really, really tried to avoid everything from him.”
Byrd clashed with Williamson in what was the third defence of his IBF world heavyweight title back in October of 2005, defeating ‘Touch Of Sleep’ via unanimous decision at the Events Center in Reno, Nevada.
Williamson compiled a professional record of 27 wins (23 by knockout) and 8 losses, over 35 bouts.
As an amateur, he was especially distinguished, with a record of 120 wins, 17 losses and 1 draw, including 103 knockous. He won the US national amateur heavyweight championship three years running from ’96 to ’98, plus National Golden Gloves titles in ‘96 and ‘99.
