What was it like to have been hit on the chin by heavyweight power-punchers George Foreman, Earnie Shavers, Cleveland Williams and Ron Lyle? There is one man who today can, in a quite unique perspective, be able to say what it was indeed like to have faced these monsters. His name is not overly familiar, but New Orleans heavyweight Leroy Caldwell, who fought as a pro in the 1960s,’70s and ’80s, quite literally ‘fought ’em all’ (Caldwell the only living man to have fought Foreman, Shavers and Williams).
Earnie Shavers
Earnie Shavers: The man who finished “The Greatest”
Called by many the hardest heavyweight puncher in history, Earnie Shavers made his pro debut in November 1969, with a second round KO over one Silas Johnson. Johnson became the first of a number of fighters to be knocked flat or stopped, that number would eventually total 67.
Boxing Legends coming out Sept 18 to support Fight To Educate in Manchester, NH Draft
MANCHESTER, N.H. (September 11, 2014) – Four boxing legends will lend their support to the 13th annual Fight To Educate (FTE), on Thursday night, September 18 at Verizon Wireless Center in Manchester, New Hampshire.
This year’s legends are former world middleweight champion Vito Antueofermo (50-7-2, 21 KOs), world heavyweight title challengers Chuck “Bayonne Bleeder” Wepner (25-14-2, 17 KOs) and Earnie “The Acorn” Shavers (74-14-1, 68 KOs), and two-time World Boxing Association heavyweight champion John “The Quietman” Ruiz (44-9-1, 30 KOs).
Earnie Shavers: Pure Power, Pure Punching, Pure Passion
Having just read another article on heavyweight punching legend Earnie Shavers (this fascinating piece on Ringtv.com), I wanted to put up my own piece on “The Acorn,” a man who was once dubbed “The Puncher of The Century.”
I’ve had the privilege of speaking with the 1970’s and early ’80’s heavyweight terror a number of times and here he kindly lists for me his top-three all-time heavyweight punchers; as well as telling me how he feels he would have done – in his pure-punching, zinging prime – against fellow legends, Tyson, Foreman, Liston and today’s kings, the Klitschkos.