Tyson Fury has continued to prove why heโs one of the greatest heavyweight boxers of all-time since making his comeback in 2018 โ his last fight was in 2015 against legendary Wladimir Klitschko, in which Fury won the unified WBA (Super), IBF, WBO, IBO, and The Ring magazine heavyweight world titles.
On December 3, 2022, Tyson Fury put his undefeated record โ as well as his WBC Heavyweight title โ on the line against Derek Chisora at Tottenham Hotspur Stadium in London, England. Fury entered the 12-round bout with an impressive 32-0-1 record, while Chisora donned a 33-12 record in his pro career..
It was their third time fighting one another, with Fury winning by unanimous decision on July 23, 2011 and winning again by corner stoppage on November 29, 2014. The buildup to this fight was real as both fighters felt they had the goods to walk away victorious, but only one fighter could be determined winner.
That fighter was Tyson Fury. It ended up lasting 10 rounds, but Fury ended up winning by technical knockout with just 15 seconds left in the 10th round โ improving his unbeaten record to 33-0-1. The fight card also included a TKO win for Daniel Dubois, who retained his WBA (Regular) heavyweight title.
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Who Are the Greatest Heavyweight Boxers of All-Time?
At 6-foot-9, Tyson Fury towers over his competitors โ making it extremely hard to gain an advantage inside the ring. When you couple that with his remarkable ring sense and sound fundamentals, itโs no surprise he has gone unbeaten in 34 bouts โ despite lacking the strength and speed of other fighters.
In 2015, he won the unified WBA (Super), IBF, WBO, IBO, and The Ring magazine heavyweight world titles with his win over Wladimir Klitschko by unanimous decision. He went on to win the WBC title vs. Deontay Wilder in 2020 and has defended that title three times โ including two title defenses in 2022.
Thereโs no doubt that Tyson Fury is one of the greatest heavyweight boxers of all-time, which puts him in good company โ considering some of the heavyweights that have entertained us in the past. To show you just how good that company is, letโs look at some of the other greatest heavyweight boxers of all-time!
15. Oleksandr Usyk
Oleksandr Usyk is an active Ukrainian heavyweight boxer who stands 6-foot-3 and has a 78โ reach. He made his professional boxing debut on December 14, 2013 and fought his most recent bout on August 20, 2022. In 20 career pro fights, Usyk has a 20-0-0 record with 13 of those wins coming via knockout.
Usyk won the WBO world heavyweight title on September 17, 2016 and defended the title three times before adding the WBC heavyweight title on January 27, 2018. Six months later, he added the WBA (Super) and IBF heavyweight titles and has defended all four titles three times over the past four years.
14. Wladimir Klitschko
Wladimir Klitschko is a retired Ukrainian heavyweight boxer who stood 6-foot-6 and had an 81โ reach. He made his professional boxing debut on November 16, 1996 and fought his final bout on April 29, 2017. In 69 career pro fights, Klitschko had a 64-5-0 record with 53 of those wins coming by way of knockout.
Klitschko is a two-time world heavyweight champion who spent 12 years as champion โ including the unified WBO, WBA (Super), IBF, and The Ring titles (before losing them to Tyson Fury). He defended the WBO title 19 times and the IBF title 18 times, and defeated 23 opponents for a world heavyweight title.
13. Vitali Klitschko
Vitali Klitschko, older brother of Wladimir, is a retired Ukrainian heavyweight boxer who stood 6-foot-7 and had an 80โ reach. He made his professional boxing debut on November 16, 1996 and fought his final bout on September 8, 2012. In 47 career pro fights, he had a 45-2-0 record with 41 wins by knockout.
Klitschko held the WBO title between 1999 and 2000, The Ring title between 2004 and 2005, and the WBC title twice between 2004 and 2013. He dominated the heavyweight division with his little brother โ throughout the 2000s and most of the 2010s, an era in heavyweight boxing known as the โKlitschko Era.โ
12. Sonny Liston
Sonny Liston is a former American heavyweight boxer who stood 6-foot-1 and had an 84โ reach. He made his professional boxing debut on September 17, 1953 and fought his final bout on June 29, 1970 โ he passed away a few months later. In 54 career pro bouts, he had a 50-4-0 record with 39 knockouts.
Liston only lost four fights in his career and two of those came at the hands of Muhammad Ali. He won his first WBA world heavyweight title in 1962 and defended it once, while also adding the WBC title before losing both titles to Ali. In 1991, he was inducted into the International Boxing Hall of Fame (IBHOF).
11. Lennox Lewis
Lennox Lewis is a retired British-Canadian heavyweight boxer who stood 6-foot-5 and had an 84โ reach. He made his professional boxing debut on July 21, 1989 and fought his final bout on June 21, 2003. In 44 career pro fights between 1989 and 2003, Lewis had a 41-2-1 record with 32 wins coming by knockout.
Lewis won multiple national titles earlier in his career, but his first world title didnโt come until 1997. He defended that title four times before being named undisputed champion in 1999 when he combined his WBC title with the IBO, WBA, and IBO titles. He lost the titles in 2001, but regained them later that year.
10. Mike Tyson
Mike Tyson is a retired American heavyweight boxer who stood 6-foot-1 and had a 71โ reach. He made his professional boxing debut on April 10, 1985 and fought his final bout on June 11, 2005. In 58 pro fights during his 20-year career, Tyson had a 50-6-0 with 44 wins by way of knockout and two no contests.
Tyson is the youngest heavyweight to even win a world title, doing so at the age of 20 years and 4 months. He was named the undisputed heavyweight champion in 1987 and held that title for three years until losing the titles to James Douglas in 1990. He later regained the WBA and WBC titles in 1996.
9. Evander Holyfield
Evander Holyfield is a retired American heavyweight boxer who stood 6-foot-2 and had a 78โ reach. He made his professional boxing debut on January 20, 1985 and fought his final bout on May 7, 2011. In 57 career pro fights during his 26-year career, he had a 44-10-2 record with 29 wins by way of knockout.
After becoming the undisputed cruiserweight champion in 1988, Holyfield became the undisputed heavyweight champion in 1990. Heโs the only four-time heavyweight champion and the only boxer to be named undisputed champion in two different weight classes. He also won a bronze Olympic medal.
8. Larry Holmes
Larry Holmes is a retired American heavyweight boxer who stood 6-foot-3 and had an 81โ reach. He made his professional boxing debut on May 2, 1973 and fought his final bout on July 27, 2002. In 75 career pro fights during his 29-year career, he had a 69-6-0 record with 44 wins by way of knockout.
Holmes is the last living boxer to have defeated Muhammad Ali. He was a world heavyweight champion for seven years between 1978 and 1985 โ including the WBC title (1978-1983), The Ring and lineal title (1980-1985), and the IBF title (1983-1985). There was a time in his career that he had a 48-0-0 record.
7. Jack Dempsey
Jack Dempsey is a former American heavyweight boxer who stood 6-foot-1 and had a 73โ reach. He made his professional boxing debut on February 2, 1915 and fought his final bout on September 22, 1927. In 67 career pro fights during his 12-year career, he had a 53-6-8 record with 43 knockouts.
Dempsey was a major figure in the boxing community during the 1920s and was the heavyweight champion between 1919 (when he defeated Jess Wilard) and 1926 (when he lost to Gene Tunney). He fought Tunney again in 1927, but ended up losing in what would be the final fight of his iconic career.
6. Joe Frazier
Joe Frazier is a former American heavyweight boxer who stood 5-foot-11 and had a 73โ reach. He made his professional boxing debut on September 20, 1965 and fought his final bout on December 3, 1981. In 37 career pro fights during his 16-year career, he had a 32-4-1 record with 27 wins by way of knockout.
Frazier was the first boxer to ever defeat Muhammad Ali โ a significant achievement that helped solidify his legacy. He was the undisputed heavyweight champion of the world for three years between 1970 and 1973 before losing his titles to George Foreman. Frazier also won a gold medal at the 1964 Olympics.
5. George Foreman
George Foreman is a retired American heavyweight boxer who stood 6-foot-3 and had a 78โ reach. He made his professional boxing debut on July 1, 1969 and fought his final bout on November 22, 1997. In 81 career pro fights during his 28-year career, he had a 76-5-0 record with 68 wins by way of knockout.
Foreman became a world champion in 1977 when he won the WBA and WBC heavyweight title โ he defended those titles twice. After a 10-year hiatus, he returned to the sport and eventually won the IBF and WBA titles in 1994 โ becoming the oldest boxer to ever win a world heavyweight title at 45 years old.
4. Rocky Marciano
Rocky Marciano is a former American heavyweight boxer who stood 5-foot-10 and had a 68โ reach. He made his professional boxing debut on July 12, 1948 and fought his final bout on September 21, 1955. In 49 career pro fights during his 7-year career, he had a perfect 49-0-0 record with 43 wins by knockout.
Marciano is the only heavyweight to retire with an undefeated record. He was the heavyweight champion of the world for five years between 1952 and 1956 โ defending his title six times against five different opponents. When he faced an opponent, the chances of that opponent getting knocked out were high.
3. Jack Johnson
Jack Johnson is a former American heavyweight boxer who stood 6-foot-0 and had a 74โ reach. He made his professional boxing debut on November 1, 1897 and fought his final bout on April 28, 1931. In 78 career pro fights during his 34-year career, he had a 54-11-9 record with 34 wins by way of knockout.
Johnson became the first black heavyweight to win a world title in 1908 and held his title for nearly eight years until 1915. He is one of the most influential and iconic boxers in the history of the sport and played a major role in the history of racism and breaking color barriers. He won โThe Fight of the Centuryโ in 1910.
2. Joe Louis
Joe Louis is a former American heavyweight boxer who stood 6-foot-1 and had a 76โ reach. He made his professional boxing debut on July 12, 1934 and fought his final bout on October 26, 1951. In 69 career pro fights during his 17-year career, he had a 66-3-0 record with 52 wins coming by way of knockout.
Louis was the heavyweight champion of the world for nearly 12 years between 1937 and 1949, in which he defended his title 25 times. He holds a record for the longest single title reign in heavyweight history and boxing history, in general. His 25 title defenses is also a record between all boxing weight classes.
1. Muhammad Ali
Muhammad Ali is a former American heavyweight boxer who stood 6-foot-3 and had a 78โ reach. He made his professional boxing debut on December 27, 1960 and fought his final bout on December 11, 1981. In 61 career pro fights during his 21-year career, he had a 56-5-0 record with 37 wins by knockout.
Ali was a three-time world heavyweight champion. He won his first heavyweight title after beating Sonny Liston in 1964 and remained a champion until his loss to Joe Frazier in 1971. He became a champion after beating George Foreman in 1974 and held the title until 1978. He won it a third time later that year.
Who Are the Greatest Heavyweight Boxers Right Now?
According to ESPNโs boxing rankings, Tyson Fury is currently the No. 1 heavyweight boxer in the world right now โ but that title can easily be given to Oleksandr Usyk with a proper argument. Rounding out their top-five include Deontay Wilder at No. 3, Anthony Joshua at No. 4, and Andy Ruiz Jr. at No. 5.
Other heavyweight boxers worth mentioning today include Joe Joyce, Dillian Whyte, Joseph Parker, Otto Wallin, Jared Anderson, Frank Sanchez, Filip Hrgoviฤ, and Martin Bakole. All of these fighters have impressive resumes and are known to put on a good fight against any opponent โ no matter who.
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With that said, Tyson Fury and Oleksandr Usyk remain the two greatest heavyweight boxers right now and of their generation. Usyk currently owns the WBA (Super), IBF, WBO, and The Ring titles, while Fury holds the WBC title. A fight between the two was in the works, but those talks stalled and were tabled.
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