Top 10 Brutal Fist Fights in Anime

“Psycho-Pass” (2012-14)
Enforcing justice in a subjugated society, fighting for freedom in the cruellest of ways, this pair are truly two sides of the same blood-soaked coin. With plans to destroy the Sibyl System at any cost to free humanity from its shackles, mass murderer Makishima finally ends up trading blows with the brooding badass Kogami, who has taken it upon himself to step outside the law to end things once and for all. Turns out their ideals are almost as heavy as their fists, with neither giving inch in a battle of sheer skill.

“Medaka Box” (2012)
You do not want to mess with this school council president. In spite of her buxom appearance, Medaka is well-known for her monstrous, magical strength, something that boxing club member Takachiho is eager to put to the test. With a mutual respect for wanting to punch the crap out of each other, fists fly as the two go all out in an impromptu kickboxing match. While Takachiho is certainly no amateur, he’s got no chance against Medaka’s reflexes, or perhaps a well-timed heal to the head. Knockout.

“JoJo’s Bizarre Adventure” (2012-16)
What’s JoJo doing here, we hear you cry? Well, we’re not actually including any of the battles that involve the use of Hamon or Stands, rather we’re taking things back to the very beginning. After managing to worm his way into the Joestar household, the sociopathic Dio Brando plots his takeover by destroying every facet of Jonathan Joestar’s life. The most brutal example of this comes in the form of a boxing match, where he decides to incorporate some back-alley techniques and nearly breaks JoJo’s face in. Just goes to show that even before he was a vampire, Dio was a total bastard.

“Gintama” (2006-)
Siblings will always fight, that’s just a fact. Granted it’s doubtful they hate each other as much as these two members of the Yato clan. After abandoning both her and their ailing mother to join the Harusame Pirates, Kagura shows no mercy to her brother as they two engage in a ruthless slugfest. Given how both are abnormally strong, this fight is a particularly bloody one. Despite her thirst for revenge and unyielding spirit, Kagura soon learns that compared to Kamui, she’s no longer one of the galaxy’s strongest. That looked like it hurt.

“Mobile Suit Gundam: Char’s Counterattack” (1988)
The rivalry between these two ace pilots has set the standard for the many, many, many duplicates that came after. With the Principality of Zeon in tatters, only a handful of loyalists remain, one of which is the Red Comet himself. Disillusioned once again by the Earth Federation, Char plans to lead the Neo-Zeon forces to finish things once and for all. Sure, this fist fight doesn’t feature any giant mecha, but it does see these age old rivals reignite their feud in a clash of ideals. At least until Quess ruins the whole thing!

“Fist of the North Star” (1984-88)
It doesn’t get more masculine than this. Raised as brothers and trained in the deadly art of Hokuto Shiken, these two living weapons find themselves on opposing ends of the battlefield. While Kenshiro uses his immense power to save innocents from the horrors of the post-apocalyptic wasteland, Raoh seeks only to dominate it, leading to these two honorary siblings eventually coming to blows. As you might have guessed, there’s a tone of high pitch battle cries, plenty of blood, and Kenshiro just being awesome. Wait, did he just punch through Roah’s hand?

“Hunter x Hunter” (2011-14)
His journey to become a hunter left Gon with no shortage of rivals and adversaries, but by far the most iconic and creepy was the magician with a lust for death. After initially getting the stuffing kicked out of him during the Hunter’s Exam, Gon finally gets to pay Hisoka back in the final round at Heaven’s Arena. What follows is a fast-paced fever dream of a fist fight, where both demonstrate that size doesn’t matter, only strength. He may not have taken home the win in the end, but no one can deny that seeing Gon land that punch to Hisoka’s face was oh so satisfying.

“Yu Yu Hakasho” (1992-94)
The Dark Tournament will go down as being a hub for some of the best fights in all of shonen anime, and with the likes of Yusuke Urameshi as a competitor you knew that a stern pummelling was never far away. Of course, his demonic opponent is no stranger to settling things with his fists. When the two are running low on stamina, Chu suggests the two take it to the next level – a knife edge death match where the only determining factors are fists…and the odd headbutt.

“Naruto Shippuden” (2007-17)
And just like that, one of anime’s longest running rivalries comes to an end. While these two shinobi have fought against each other several times over, their final feud easily tops the rest just from an emotional standpoint. After exhausting themselves due to overuse of the Sharingan and Nine-Tailed-Fox, all Naruto and Sasuke can do is just keep punching. Even when overcome by fatigue, each blow hits its mark. Throw in an increasingly sombre atmosphere, and this fight pretty much encapsulates Naruto and Sasuke’s entire relationship; tragic, violent and unrelenting.

Before we reveal our number one pick, here are a few honourable mentions.

Morgiana vs. Masrur
“Magi” series (2012-16)

Simon vs. The Anti-Spiral
“Gurren Lagann The Movie: The Lights in the Sky are Stars” (2009)

“Hajime No Ippo” series (2000-14)
It’s the definitive show about boxing and has some of the most vicious yet realistic fights ever put to animation, how could we not include it?! While any bout from this series could have taken the top spot, the standout remains the heavyweight championship fight between the hot-headed beast that is Takamura against the unempathetic Bryan Hawk. While Takamura is still kind of an asshole, seeing him unleash his inner monster to literally destroy the lecherous Hawk was nothing short of a masterpiece. Their dedication to the sport, belief in themselves and pride as men, it’s all put on display within the ring.

Do you agree with our list? What do you think is the most brutal fist fight in anime? With new top tens published every day, be sure to subscribe to WatchMojo.com.