Tyson's farewell knockout and Lewis' loud fall. Top 10 heavyweight knockouts in the 21st century

Among boxing fans there is an opinion that the most spectacular knockouts occur in the heavyweight or, as it is called, “Royal Division”. It's hard to argue with that, since while giants are fighting, every blow can be decisive. Even people who are not fans of boxing are not averse to watching two hefty men knock the hell out of each other. This MMA.Metaratings.ru compiles the top 10 most incredible heavyweight knockouts since 2000.

This is a fight of two of the most popular fighters of that time. Michael was a two-time world champion and was considered a more talented boxer. However, experts still have David around because of his devastating striking power, and, as it turned out, not in vain. It took the New Zealander just 30 seconds to destroy Michael Moorer. It was definitely the worst defeat of the American boxer in his career. It is noteworthy that Tua's main weapon has always been a left hook with a jump, for which he was compared with the legendary Joe Frazier. However, at that time, David Tua hit the target with a right hook.

It is impossible to imagine such a rating without the participation of Deontay Wilder, the modern king of knockouts. The "Bronze Bomber" knocks people out right and left. Not all of his victories look beautiful, but among the 42 knockouts, there are quite a few that would be included in this collection. So, in 2016, the Pole Artur Szpilka became another victim of the American. Before the fight and during the fight itself, the Pole showed off a lot, until in the ninth round he fell across an oncoming right straight from Deontay. Arthur fell to the canvas, and there was no point in opening a score.

Anthony Joshua, one of the current leaders of the heavyweight division, is also on our list. In 2017, the Briton climbed to the top, and on his way stood the already "knocked out" former hegemon of the heavyweight Wladimir Klitschko. The Ukrainian boxer was returning after the defeat from Tyson Fury and hoped that he would regain some of the titles, but that’s not how it turned out. The denouement of this spectacular battle took place in the 11th round. The beginning of the end was put by Joshua's terrible uppercut, after which it was only a matter of technique to finish off the opponent.

At the end of 2006, Belarusian Siarhei Liakhovich held the WBO title and defended the belt against the eminent boxer Shannon Briggs. The American was then considered a decent underdog, since his career was at an end, and Liakhovich, on the contrary, was gaining momentum. However, the fight did not end as expected. Shannon literally knocked the opponent

out of the ring. So, the duel for Siarhei ended right on the table of the refereeing team. The incredible knockout of the legendary Briggs came just a couple of seconds before the final gong.

Another fight from our top, where one of the fighters was outside the ring. At the end of 2000, a Russian boxer Oleg Maskayev met with the American Kirk Johnson. Oleg was very popular in the United States. He paved the way to fame with a victory over Hasim Rahman in 1999. Then the Russian scored a spectacular knockout, having knocked the opponent out of the ring. But in the battle with Kirk Johnson, Maskayev also had to “fly” a bit. Such a cruel joke of fate happened to the fighter.

The legendary “Iron” Mike Tyson also got into our selection, namely, his last victory in the professional ring. Before the fight, Tyson got the very tattoo on his face. Clifford also promised to make him the same, but from the other side. However, we all remember how this bragging ended as a result. And if anyone has forgotten, then we suggest revisiting this impressive knockout performed by "Iron" Mike.

The next knockout from the list happened relatively recently, in 2019. And again, "Bronze Bomber" is onstage. The victim of Deontay was the American Dominic Breezil, who went to the Kingdom of Morpheus in the first round. It was one of the most spectacular inside-the-distance victory for Wilder in his career. Let revisit just a killer right handgun from Deontay!

This is an even more recent fight from the top. This time the victim is Deontay Wilder. This, of course, is about his third fight with Tyson Fury. Mutual hatred for each other resulted in a principled battle, which was fought, as they say, to the death. The fighters staged the best fight of 2021 with a lot of mutual knockdowns. But in the 11th round, Fury's devastating right side finished Wilder and put an end to their protracted confrontation.

Almost at the very top of the list is a knockout that shocked the boxing world. In 2001, Hasim Rahman, in the status of a big underdog, scored a sensational victory over the dominant champion Lennox Lewis. Then everything came together: Lennox was poorly prepared for the fight, but Rahman in those years was still a motivated fighter, and not a lazy athlete he became six years later. It was all over in the fifth round. The Briton fell loudly after Rahman's remarkable right cross. But this was only the beginning of their confrontation.

Seven months later, Lewis and Rahman met in a rematch. This time Lennox took the fight very seriously, but Rahman got a swelled head and called himself the new king of the heavyweight division. In the fourth round, Lewis calculated Hasim and sent him to a beautiful knockout with a powerful one0two punch. Fate played a trick on Rahman so that he landed exactly in that part of the ring where a huge crown was drawn. The Ring magazine recognized this victory of Lennox Lewis as the best knockout of the year. And many people consider this enchanting triumph to be the best knockout in the history of boxing in the 21st century.

By the way, an interesting fact: the organizers understood that one of the fighters would fall that evening, and in order to enhance the effect, they lowered the microphone lower to the ring. The sound of Lewis's whipping hits can be compared to real lashes.

The "Royal Division" has always pleased the fans with a great number of interesting fights and powerful knockouts. That is why it was incredibly difficult to choose the 10 most spectacular. There is no doubt that the big guys will continue to knock each other out brilliantly, which, defiantly, all big boxing fan expect.