Knockouts are generally all about timing, precision, and risk (or luck, who knows?). One clean connection can erase rounds of careful work, flip the odds, and leave an arena frozen for a pregnant pause before the roar hits. The truly “crazy” ones can both end a fight and rewrite the story around it. Sometimes the shock comes from who lands the punch (an underdog, for example). Other times, it’s how it lands (a perfectly placed counter that arrives in otherworldly fashion).

Part of what makes these stoppages so memorable is the build-up. That could be from a champion cruising until a single mistake, a pressure fighter wearing someone down until a door cracks open, or two elite talents choosing violence from the opening bell. The best (and most haunting) KOs also show boxing’s razor-thin margins. A punch thrown a half-second late turns into a punch eaten. A lazy jab becomes a counter invitation. A tired step back becomes a straight line to the canvas.

Continuing from Part 1, these highlight reels of endings still get replayed because they look unreal in real time. Some come from heavyweight chaos. Others happen in lighter divisions where speed and placement make the impact look even more sudden. As always, these moments also underline why officiating, medical checks, and strict rules matter: The sport celebrates skill, but it takes safety seriously when the lights go out.

Here are nine more of the wildest knockouts in boxing history (in no particular order).

1. Jack Johnson vs. James J. Jeffries

Dave Chappelle brought much attention to this “Fight of the Century” in his special, The Unstoppable... Long before pay-per-view eras and viral knockouts, this heavyweight title fight showed how a stoppage can shake the country, not just a division. Jack Johnson entered as the first Black world heavyweight champion, while former champ Jim Jeffries came out of retirement as the so-called “Great White Hope.” The action itself turned brutal and one-sided late: Johnson dropped Jeffries twice, and Jeffries’ corner threw in the towel for a 15th-round TKO in Reno, Nevada.

2. Marvin Hagler vs. Thomas Hearns

Hagler and Hearns spent the opening minutes trading heavy shots like they had a curfew, not a championship distance. Hearns carved a cut into Hagler’s forehead; Hagler kept walking forward, forcing a fight instead of a chess match. The end came in Round 3, when Hagler caught Hearns clean and poured on pressure until the TKO stoppage. Three rounds, endless violence, instant legend.

3. Deontay Wilder vs. Luis Ortiz

Ortiz gave Wilder real problems with the exact ingredients that typically frustrate a pure power puncher (timing, distance, and clean countering). Wilder stayed patient anyway, knowing he rarely needs many chances. In Round 10, he found the right hand and detonated the fight on contact. The “crazy” part isn’t just the impact — it’s how quickly control shifted from “competitive title fight” to “get the stretcher team ready.”

4. Alexander Povetkin vs. Dillian Whyte

Whyte hurt Povetkin early and scored knockdowns, and it looked like the comeback story might belong to him. Povetkin kept taking small steps toward the pocket, looking for one lane... and then he hit it perfectly. In Round 5, he uncorked a savage left uppercut that stopped Whyte cold. One second you’re in a fight, the next you’re staring at ceiling lights.

5. Gervonta Davis vs. Leo Santa Cruz

This one lives on every “best uppercuts ever” montage for a reason. Santa Cruz tried to close distance with offense, but Davis waited for the opening and fired a short counter left uppercut straight through the attempt. The result: An immediate, highlight-reel collapse in Round 6. It’s brutal in the cleanest, most technical way — a perfectly chosen punch thrown at exactly the wrong moment for the other guy.

6. Nonito Donaire vs. Fernando Montiel

Montiel came in as a unified bantamweight champ, and Donaire treated the moment like an audition for pound-for-pound lists. Then the left hook landed. Donaire cracked Montiel with a shot that made time slow down (for Montiel, presumably), and the follow-up sequence turned the ring into a rescue mission. The referee stopped it in Round 2. The KO still shocks because it didn't look like a “maybe he’ll beat the count” situation.

7. Naoya Inoue vs. Juan Carlos Payano

Inoue didn’t waste time, found the opening, and ended the fight almost immediately. After a jab set the line, Inoue fired a straight right that dropped Payano flat, ending the fight at 1:10 of Round 1. It’s one of those “did that really just happen?” stoppages where the replay looks even more violent than the live shot.

8. Anthony Joshua vs. Francis Ngannou

The build-up carried crossover intrigue, but Joshua kept it simple with sharp fundamentals, straight punches, and no wasted motion. He dropped Ngannou in the first round, then closed the show in Round 2 with a clean right hand that ended things at 2:38. The knockout stood out because it looked so efficient. Joshua didn’t swing wild; he just placed power exactly where it needed to go.

9. Rocky Marciano vs. Jersey Joe Walcott

Walcott boxed beautifully for long stretches and built a lead, controlling range and rhythm while Marciano kept grinding forward. Then Marciano found the shot that launched 1,000 highlight reels: A thunderous right hand in Round 13 that shut the switch off and crowned a new heavyweight champ. The clip still lands today because it shows heavyweight history turning on one punch — and one punch only.

10. Prince Naseem Hamed vs. Kevin Kelley

Hamed’s U.S. debut turned into a full-blown highlight-reel shootout. Both guys hit the canvas multiple times, the pace stayed reckless, and every exchange looked like somebody was going out cold. Hamed ultimately closed the show with a Round 4 KO after a sequence that left Kelley unable to beat the count.

11. Jack Dempsey vs. Jess Willard

This is one of the most infamous beatdowns ever captured in boxing history. Dempsey dropped the much larger Willard repeatedly, kept him under pressure, and forced a stoppage in the third round to win the heavyweight title. Even with the age and grainy footage, the violence reads clearly: Dempsey swarmed early and never let his opponent breathe.