Moorer says Tua was the hardest puncher he faced
Whenever the subject of greatest heavyweights never to have won a world title comes up, David Tua’s name comes up; due to the good fighters Tua put down and kept down. John Ruiz (a future champ), iced inside a round. Michael Moorer (a former champ), iced inside a round. Hasim Rahman (a future champ) stopped late. Oleg Maskaev (a future champ) stopped late.
Yes, Tua could bang, no doubt about it. In his one and only shot at the world title, he was beaten handily by Lennox Lewis, who boxed his way to a wide decision victory in 2000. But when he had an opponent who was willing to stand and fight with him, or an opponent who could not get away from his lethal howitzers, Tua was utterly destructive. In a recent “Best I Faced” from Ring Magazine, Moorer listed Tua as the hardest puncher he ever faced. This says a lot when we consider how Moorer fought the likes of George Foreman, Bert Cooper and Bonecrusher Smith.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=r3r6oXG-DsE
Tua fought Moorer in August of 2002 and the fight lasted just 30 seconds. Tua, coming out stalking as was his style and approach, tagged the southpaw former champ with a right to the head, followed by a left and then another right, and Moorer was laid out, half out of the ropes. It was over in a flash. Tua showed again how utterly lethal he could be. Against the right opponent.
Moorer never had a great chin as a heavyweight, but nobody ever took the Kronk fighter out as quickly and as ruthlessly as “The Tuaman.”
After this fight, Tua, hoping for a rematch with Ruiz who was by now WBA heavyweight champ, had no such luck; Ruiz seemingly and understandably wanting nothing further to do with the man who had blitzed him in less than 30 seconds in 1996. Instead, Tua boxed a rematch with Rahman, going home with a controversial draw. It turned out the Moorer annihilation was the last truly impressive and meaningful KO Tua ever scored.
Again, one of the best never to have ruled the world. David Tua: 52-5-2(43).
