History Awesome / PunchOut

* King Hippo can use his fat against you and is hard to go down. Even though he can't get back up.

** Even if it was a freak accident, his victory was against Nick Bruiser, the final boss in ''Super Punch-Out!'', who outranked his powerful brother and the recurring champions. [[DavidVersusGoliath Way to go, Joe!]]

* [[CheatersNeverProsper Countering Aran Ryan's illegal attacks with a Star Punch]] for a OneHitKO.

* He gets two on the Wii.

* Back on the NES version, there's a wonderful satisfaction at seeing Von Kaiser go ''flying'' back when he gets knocked down. Even Glass Joe would stumble a bit.

* Mr. Sandman's final rush in Title Defense Mode on the Wii. Basically if he's one KO away from losing the match, Mr. Sandman will start attacking with a flurry of uppercuts. If the player survives the onslaught Mr. Sandman will completely drop his guard out of exhaustion. This enables you to combo him as much as you want, and get stars for doing so. Finish up the combo with a [[{{Shoryuken}} 3-Star Punch]] and you win. ''Awesomely''.

* Simply put, ''beating Mike Tyson!'' If you've defeated Mike Tyson/Mr. Dream in the NES version -- especially by knockout/TKO -- you might as well consider yourself a true champion.

* Losing to [[ButtMonkey Glass Joe]] in Title Defense -- [[TookALevelInBadass which is surprisingly easy to do]] -- theoretically means he becomes world champion. Read that again. '''It's very possible for Glass Joe to become World Champion.'''
** Really, this goes to everyone who returns for the Title Defense portion. They don't come back as they were in the first go around, no they come back fully prepared to win. Even some of the more quirky gimmicks, such as Disco Kid's new passion for aerobics, Bear Hugger's squirrel companion or Aran Ryan's boxing glove whip, are able to bring the heat in the ring.

* The ComebackMechanic where Little Mac supposedly gets KO'd, but [[{{Determinator}} manages to keep standing with his last ounce of strength]]. It's even more awesome if you ''manage to win''. And it's one of the Challenges for TD Mr. Sandman, as well.
* ''Beating Mike Tyson!'' If you've defeated Mike Tyson/Mr. Dream in the NES version, you might as well consider yourself a true champion.
* When Doc asks Mac if he's sure he wants to do The Last Stand, Mac's response is a simple punch at him that deliberately misses by only a few inches. Also worth noting Doc doesn't flinch in the slightest, but calmly says, "All right, then. Let's go out on top, kid. It's time to take your place in history."

* In a way, Glass Joe having a 1-99 record. Sure, he's a nervous wreck who practically serves as [[{{Jobber}} training for aspiring other boxers]], but [[{{Determinator}} not only has he accepted 100 matches, he goes through the fight to the very end]], subverting the CheeseEatingSurrenderMonkeys stereotype.
* Losing to [[WarmupBoss Glass]] [[ButtMonkey Joe]] in Title Defense ([[TookALevelInBadass which is surprisingly easy to do]]) theoretically means he becomes world champion. Read that again. '''It's very possible for Glass Joe to become World Champion.'''
** Really, this goes to everyone who returns for the Title Defense portion. They don't come back as they were in the first go around, no they come back fully prepared to win. Even some of the more quirky gimmicks, such as Disco Kid's new passion for aerobics or Bear Hugger's squirrel companion, are able to bring the heat in the ring.
* [[FridgeBrilliance In a sense]], Mac retiring after three defeats in Mac's Last Stand is this. As the world champion, he [[KnowWhenToFoldEm chooses to retire from his career]] once it becomes clear he's losing his touch; to him, retiring while still being known as a champion is better than suffering a humiliating chain of defeats and being remembered as a has-been.

* During Don Flamenco’s Intro, he launches a bull into the stratosphere![[note]] He Doesn't actually launch it into the stratosphere, but still high enough to be beyond impressive.[[/note]] Imagine having that ability in real life!

** Really, this goes to everyone who returns for the Title Defense portion. They don't come back as they were in the first go around, no they come back fully prepared to win.

* During Don Flamenco’s Intro, he launches about a bull into the stratosphere![[note]] He Doesn't actually launch it into the stratosphere.[[/note]] Imagine having that ability in real life!

* During Don Flamenco’s Intro, he launches about a bull into the stratosphere![[Note]] He Doesn't actually launch it into the stratosphere.[[/Note]] Imagine having that ability in real life!

!!Meta
* The fact that WebVideo/GamesRepainted's Brian did this with an input-lagged controller.
** On the subject of meta awesome moments, streamer and WebVideo/{{Retsupurae}} guest [=TieTuesday=] managed to complete the normal Career mode on the Wii iteration of the game in one sitting. ''While drunk''. As he progresses through the mode, he gets progressively more drunk with each different brand of beer he drinks. By the time he finally defeats Mr. Sandman, he is ''completely wasted'', and yet overjoyed.
** Website/YouTube channel Skip the Tutorial, with the aid of the Punch-Out community (as well as [=Zallard1=], the world-record holder for the Punch-Out!! speed-run) managed to find a way to ''[[RidiculouslyDifficultRoute complete the Wii version without dodging or blocking at all]]''. Though it does require either a combination of luck and inhuman levels of timing, or [[ComputersAreFast tool-assisted means]] to beat the World Circuit in both modes. For example, [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CNSEYklHHig beating Title Defense Soda Popinski]] requires you (if you're crazy enough to try this) to counter ''every'' one of his attacks, aside from his uppercuts which cannot be countered. Oh, and you need the headgear (which you get from losing 100 bouts) ''and'' you need to use the ComebackMechanic to narrowly avoid a TKO...''twice in a row'', which is so rare that people assumed it wasn't even possible at all.
** At the 2019 Games Done Quick, [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mUpT7fHi1lA Zallard1]] shows his chops at Punch-Out by defeating every single boxer ''while blindfolded''. While it is true that every boxer has audio cues for their attacks, some of them have moves that use similar audio cues for telegraphing. [=Zallard1=] defeats every single boxer in this run on the first attempt, each time during the ''first round'' of the fight, only needing to get up a mere handful of times, and even nails the instant TKO strikes on several of the more challenging boxers purely through careful timing and skill.

** First, when you fight him for the first time, you see a 5-or-so-second montage of his fist meeting every other boxers' faces. Then, if you have the presence of mind to look, you'll notice he has ''zero'' losses on record.

* Mr. Sandman gets two on the Wii.

* Back on the NES version, there's a wonderful satisfaction at seeing Von Kaiser go ''flying'' back when he gets knocked down. Even Glass Joe would stumble a bit.

* Honestly, just about everything regarding Mr. Sandman's bouts. Contender or Title Defense, the game makes clear that you are going up against a ''monster''. From the intense, heavy metal soundtrack, to every one of his blows doing insane damage, to even knocking him down, just about everything you do feels like you're fighting a war. But the best is his KO animation, which consists of the final blow being shown in a RepeatCut with a flashing camera on the final shot, complete with Mr. Sandman falling to the mat in slow motion and ending with the camera looking down at his still, unmoving form. Goliath, meet David.

* When Doc asks Mac if he's sure he wants to do [[spoiler:The Last Stand]], Mac's response is a simple punch at him that deliberately misses by only a few inches. Also worth noting Doc doesn't flinch in the slightest, but calmly says, "All right, then. Let's go out on top, kid. It's time to take your place in history."