Pinklon Thomas says he felt the bite of the late Tommy Morrison's power more than anyone else.
This is despite the fact that Thomas fought heavyweight legends, Mike Tyson and Evander Holyfield during his career and he was knocked out by both former champions.
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But Morrison - known as 'The Duke' - an who stopped the former heavyweight world champion after one round of their 1991 clash, takes the mantle as the man who hit Thomas the hardest.
"Mike Weaver had a big left hook, a good right hand. He hit me with one punch and I felt it big time," Thomas once told The Ring.
"I felt [Trevor] Berbick’s punch.
"Tyson to be honest, the first round was crazy because he was knocking everyone out. I knew he was going to come out strong like that, but after the second round I kind of had Tyson figured out.
"He wasn’t really reaching me with big punches. It didn’t happen till after the fifth round when my glove got split; I got hit and my right shoulder popped out.
"I would say when I got hit by Morrison it was like being hit by a baseball bat."
Morrison had a promising career and, at one stage held the WBO belt, though is known to many others for starring opposite Sylvester Stallone as Tommy Gunn in Rocky V.
A distant relative of Wild West screen legend John Wayne gace Morrison the nickname he came to be known by and he immediately captured the imagination much like the Hollywood actor did.
At the age of 14, he was being entered by his mother into ‘tough man’ contests and as a professional, he won 42 of his 48 wins via knockout. He also shared the ring with, among others, Donovan Ruddock, Lennox Lewis and Ray Mercer, whose knockout is often re-shared on social media.
Describing the impact of Morrison's punches, Thomas continued: "I got hit to the ribs and my leg came up, I got hit with one punch and my eye split.
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"Tommy hit me harder than anyone else I was ever hit by."
The defeat to Morrison marked the third in a row for Thomas and it made it five losses in his last six fights, an unwanted streak that was started by Tyson in 1987.
As such, Thomas did not return to the ring for more than a year, but when he did, he certainly made the most of what he had left in him.
In 1992, Thomas fought an astonishing thirteen times, winning them all, with ten of the victories coming by way of knockout, although his calibre of opponent was nothing like the fighters he had faced earlier in his career.
The following year did not go quite as well, as Thomas fought once against Lawrence Carter and he was knocked out in the seventh round before hanging up his gloves for good.
Morrison himself was one fight away from facing Tyson when scheduled for a tune-up fight with Art Weathers in February 1996. However, that fell through and so did his lucrative clash with Iron Mike when he tested positive for HIV.
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Morrison, though, disputed he had the virus but it brought an end to his boxing career, aged just 27. He always maintained the result of the test was incorrect and the Nevada Athletic Commission lifted his ban from boxing in 2006.
He briefly made a return to the ring a year later, winning two low-key fights, before calling time on his career for good.
Morrison’s wife, Trisha, has continued to fight to clear up the untruths around her husband’s HIV diagnosis - even after his death from organ failure in 2013 aged just 44.
Now the former champion's son, Kenzie is following in his dad's footsteps in the world of combat sports.
He has compiled a 22-1-2 boxing record of his own but has decided to walk away and, at 34, has signed with Bare Knuckle promotion BKFC.
"I’m taking this more seriously than I’ve taken anything in a long time, just because of the opportunity that was presented to me," he said.
"To be able to be part of such a great thing and possibly even end my career with a bareknuckle heavyweight world title, would I think make my dad proud. I think that would open up doors for me to ultimately take care of my family and maybe even stay a part of the sport.”
