Frank Bruno was stopped by Mike Tyson in their heavyweight clash, but even he ‘Iron Mike’ paled in comparison to one man.
Frank Bruno, the beloved British heavyweight, entertained fans with two thrilling, albeit short, bouts with Mike Tyson, whose son faced criticism after training on pads, and a close fight while it lasted with his rival, Lennox Lewis, whose opponent, Oliver McCall, broke down in tears in their rematch.
Bruno was stopped by both of these men, as well as Tim Witherspoon in 1986, but none of these men compared to one man, who Bruno said hit harder than any other.
Frank Bruno claims ‘Bonecrusher’ hit harder than Mike Tyson
In 1984 Bruno received his first career defeat against then 13-1 James ‘Bonecrusher’ Smith.
Bruno was ahead on points going into the tenth and final round, but the tide turned when Smith, knowing his time was running thin, gambled and threw multiple shots, all of which landed.
Bruno crashed to the canvas, and it was clear he would not beat the count, and was defeated.
Speaking to The Ring when asked who hit him the hardest, Bruno said:
“Smith had a hard punch, and he was strong. This was one of my hardest fights.”
Smith went on to challenge Larry Holmes for the world title but was stopped in the twelfth round. His next world title opportunity was a successful one, as he blitzed Witherspoon inside a round to pick up the WBA title.
However, it was his next fight where Smith would lose the title to one of the most ferocious boxers to ever live.
Mike Tyson criticized ‘Bonecrusher’ Smith after fight left fans disappointed
When Tyson, who knocked Joe Cortez out in 8 seconds when he was 15, faced Smith, he did more than simply survive the devastatingly powerful punches of the ‘Bonecrusher’, but fought to a points win, making Smith one of only six men to survive to the final bell against ‘Iron Mike.’
According to BoxRec, ahead of the fight Smith said:
“Mike Tyson was impressive against Trevor Berbick, but Berbick isn’t the puncher I am. When Tyson fights me, it’s going to be a great fight. A bang-bang fight.”
However this was not the case, as the fight was widely criticized for the amount of excessive holding, which saw referee Mills Lane, who also refereed Tyson’s ear-biting bout with Holyfield, deduct points from Smith for this in rounds two and eight.
One the fight was over, Tyson said: “When I was trying to put the punches together he grabbed. This hurts boxing. This is show business, people expect a performance. I won every round and it was an easy fight.”