‘I got hit by a car, that’s how it felt’… Shannon Briggs says who hits harder between George Foreman and Lennox Lewis

Originally posted on Bloody Knockout | By Donal Long | Last updated Jul 26, 2025 12:07 PM ET

Shannon Briggs is known as one of the hardest-hitting heavyweights of all time, adding substance to his nickname, ‘The Cannon’.

The former world champion Briggs has shared the ring with some of the best heavyweights of all time.

Names on the resume of Briggs include George Foreman, Lennox Lewis, and Vitali Klitschko, as he has a 60-6-1 record. Despite his last outing coming in 2016, Briggs has been targeting a return to the boxing ring.

In 1997 and 1998, Briggs had an incredible back-to-back of opponents, meeting Foreman and Lewis. However, he clearly feels one hits harder than the other.

Shannon Briggs compares George Foreman’s power to being struck by a car

Briggs has had a lengthy and action-packed boxing career since starting his journey in 1992. However, in 1997, his career would reach the next level.

In what was the final fight of the career of ‘Big George’, Foreman was beaten by Briggs via unanimous decision. The win put ‘The Cannon’ in the world title picture, but was unsuccessful against Lennox Lewis.

Lewis knocked Briggs out in the fifth round, in what could be considered a one-sided performance. However, despite being stopped by ‘The Lion’, Briggs feels that Foreman hit harder between the pair.

When asked to compare the power of Foreman and Lewis on The First Round podcast, Briggs answered, “Nobody hit like George Foreman. George Foreman hit hard… I never felt nothing like it.”

To give some insight into how hard one of boxing’s oldest world champions hit, Briggs said, “I got hit by a car and that’s how it felt when I fought George Foreman.”

Despite winning the fight, Briggs said that Foreman actually knocked him out with a punch, before a follow-up shot woke him back up. “I was like, Jesus Christ, what the hell is going on?”

Shannon Briggs reveals injury he had going into title challenge against Lennox Lewis

Following his win over Foreman, Briggs had a 30-1 record and was the next title challenger for WBC World Heavyweight champion, Lewis.

However, Briggs did not want to accept the fight with Lewis when it was offered to him. “The truth of the matter is I wasn’t supposed to fight him. From the Foreman fight, my hand [was broken].”

Briggs went on to say that he wanted to have surgery after his meeting with Foreman, but was not permitted and fought Lewis instead. “I wasn’t allowed to do the surgery, it didn’t happen.”

Although he was not at full fitness going into the fight, Briggs said he ‘wasn’t taking the fight seriously,’ and he ‘had no fear’ of Lewis.

Briggs was unable to capture a world title in their 1998 meeting in Atlantic City. However, eight years later, a last-gasp knockout would see Briggs become world champion for the first time against Siarhei Liakhovich.

This article first appeared on Bloody Knockout and was syndicated with permission.

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