Lennox Lewis and Frank Bruno are two much-loved and big-hitting former heavyweight champions of the world.
Bruno in particular, was a real darling of British sport during his time in the ring in the 80s and 90s. He fought the likes of Mike Tyson twice, Carl Williams, Joe Bugner and Lewis. It was not until his fourth attempt that he won a world title when he got a unanimous points win over Oliver McCall at Wembley in September 1995, and retired a year later after a second loss to ‘Iron Mike.’
Lewis was the last man to be undisputed back in 1999 before Oleksandr Usyk repeated the feat in 2024, then again in 2025. He remains an all-time great and KO artist who beat every man he faced in the ring, including revenge victories over Hasim Rahman and McCall, both of who scored upset knockout wins over him.
Speaking to The Ring Magazine’s Best I Ever Faced feature, McCall compared the power of Lewis and Bruno after sharing the ring with both men.
“There was two [men who hit me hardest]; both come from London. The first one was with Bruno. I got hit with a right hand (in the first round) … and it made my eye swell. It made me timid coming in because if you hit it again, it’s gonna split, and I never had my eye cut in a fight.
“The second one would have to be in the third round of the second fight with Lennox Lewis. The punch I got hit with – and I remember that punch – it was a wallop. I looked over his shoulder and saw his momma rooting for him to knock me out, and I thought of my momma not being there.
“When that man hit me I was going to retaliate, and I broke down. The overhand right that hit me sent me reeling into the ropes, and as I came back I could have just held him if I hadn’t broken down. I thought, ‘Wow.’ I just shut down.”
McCall then picked which of Lewis and Bruno he just gave the edge to as being the most powerful.
“I’d pick Lennox [as the hardest hitter]. I’m just going off what went through my mind. Bruno hit me dead in the eye, but it wasn’t as brutal as far as the shock to my body or pain as that right hand was.
“When Lennox hit me with that right hand in the third round, that was a crunching right hand. It makes me think I don’t know how I could take the punches that came after it with my hands down.”
Despite now being 60 years old, McCall fought back in June when he drew with Carlos Reyes after beating Gary Cobia in February. The former WBC ruler has now had 78 fights, winning 61 of them.
