‘Russian fighter left for dead by street gang is hardest man I faced – not AJ’
Former heavyweight boxer David Price has revealed that even Anthony Joshua’s punching power paled in comparison to a now obscure Russian fighter.
Ex-British and Commonwealth champion Price retired in 2019, having shared a ring with big names that include Derek Chisora and Alexander Povetkin.
The Liverpudlian is still one of the few men to have defeated current world heavyweight champion Tyson Fury back in 2005, while also famously dropping a young Joshua in a sparring session in 2011.
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Yet despite facing the very elite level crop of fighters, Price handpicked one boxer – German-based Russian Denis Boytsov – as having the heaviest hands.
Speaking exclusively to Daily Star Sport via Dazn, Price said: “I sparred a Russian called Denis Boytsov in Germany once. He only hit the top of my head, but he was a powerful puncher.
“I think he got his career cut short, he got absolutely battered by a gang of Russian fellas and left for dead, he couldn’t fight again. But I remember him being a really powerful puncher.”
Did you ever watch one of Denis Boytsov's fights? Let us know in the comments section.
Boytsov’s performances following his defeat in 2013 had put him in with a good shout of challenging for a world title at some point. He had been on a three-win streak when a shocking incident two months after his last bout left him fighting for his life in hospital.
The shocking news emerged in May 2015 that Boytsov had been placed in an induced coma, having been found with serious head injuries in a Berlin subway tunnel.
He was discovered on the brink of death between two subway stations in west Berlin. Boytsov then spent seven weeks in a coma, losing 70kg and being left unable to move and eat without the aid of a tube when he was finally woken up.
That ended his impressive 36-1 career in its tracks, meaning he was never able to secure a title fight. And despite Price’s assertions as to what transpired on that fateful night, the story remains shrouded in mystery.
Berlin police claimed at the time that, based on witness interviews and video footage, the incident appeared to have been an accident. Yet a statement on Boytsov's website suggested he had been the victim of an attack linked to his boxing career.
“It is possible that this attack was linked to the boxer's sporting activity,” the statement said. ''Around two years ago, Boytsov was receiving threats constantly.''
There was no further comment on who had issued the alleged threats or why. But his wife and mother of his child, Olga, was vocal about Boytsov having been the victim of a revenge attack after partying into the early hours.
While the boxer still may not fight again, nor remember who the brutal perpetrator was, he remains a formidable opponent in the eyes of those who witnessed his power first hand.
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