Why they rank here
Armstrong achieved the single most astonishing feat in boxing history: for several months in 1938 he simultaneously held world titles at featherweight, lightweight and welterweight, three divisions at once, a feat impossible under modern rules and never equaled. Nicknamed Homicide Hank and Hammerin' Hank, he fought at a suffocating, non-stop pace behind a peculiarly low heart rate that let him throw punches other men could not sustain. His record of roughly 151-21-9 with 101 knockouts includes a 1937 run of 27 straight wins, 22 by knockout, and 19 successful welterweight title defenses in barely two years. He beat Barney Ross, Lou Ambers and a who's who of the lighter divisions. Only a disputed draw with Ceferino Garcia denied him a fourth title in a fourth division. For sheer output, pressure and simultaneous multi-division mastery, no one else in the sport's history comes close.
Career profile
Each bar shows how this athlete compares with the strongest in our all-time list for that metric.
Head-to-head
Compare career numbers side by side.