Muhammad Ali frequently singled Marciano out when asked about toughness.
He said the hardest man to knock out would be Marciano, noting that “he kept coming and would hit you on the arms.” The two later shared an exhibition bout, but Ali often returned to Marciano when discussing durability rather than skill.
When asked to compare himself to Marciano, Mike Tyson deflected the idea of rivalry entirely.
He said he was flattered to be mentioned alongside Marciano, but stressed that they were simply two different fighters, adding that it was a privilege just to be spoken of in the same sentence.
Marciano himself never separated his legacy from Joe Louis, whom he idolised. He later admitted that seeing Louis on the canvas during their fight contributed to his decision to retire early.
Former heavyweight champion Floyd Patterson offered one of the most honest appraisals.
He described Marciano as awkward and technically crude, saying “he had two left feet and couldn’t really fight,” before adding that Marciano was also “the most determined fighter I ever saw — and he never lost.”
Light heavyweight great Archie Moore echoed that view.
He called Marciano awkward, said some of his fights were awkward too, but insisted he possessed something that couldn’t be taught: punching power that felt God-given.
George Foreman grouped Marciano with the very best, once naming Joe Louis, Marciano, and Jack Johnson as the greatest fighters ever to put on gloves.
Ali, asked again later in his career who would have been his toughest opponent, returned to the same answer.
He said Marciano was the hardest man to knock out and described him as a street fighter who simply refused to go away.
Former heavyweight champion Wladimir Klitschko combined both ideas, calling Marciano a technical fighter and a street fighter — one who never lost.
When Ali once asked legendary trainer Cus D’Amato who would have given him the toughest fight, D’Amato didn’t hesitate.
He said Marciano would have been more difficult than any opponent Ali faced, pointing to his relentless aggression and his ability to sustain it longer than even Jack Dempsey.
Veteran trainer Don Turner summed it up more simply, saying Marciano was the hardest puncher he had ever seen.
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