re: Who would win in a fight – grizzly bear or gorilla (poth in their prime)?

I don’t think a grizzly can beat up a rhino

Grizzly Bear
400–600 lbs (average), up to 800 lbs
Up to 8 feet
˜ 35 mph
Bite Force
˜ 1200–1250 PSI
Can flip 1543 lbs dumpsters, strength of 2–5 humans when shaking trees

Gorilla
300–500 lbs
Up to 6 feet
˜ 20 mph
Bite Force
˜ 1300 PSI
Can lift up to 1800 lbs, 4–9 times stronger than a human

Weapons
Bear: Sharp claws (several inches long), powerful jaws
Gorilla: Strong arms, powerful bite, no claws

Defense
Beat: Thick hide, 7 inches of fat (Kodiak bear)
Gorilla: Thick bones, less protective skin

This table highlights the bear’s advantages in size, speed, and defensive capabilities, while the gorilla excels in lifting strength and bite force.

Size and Weight Analysis
Grizzly bears, particularly adult males, can weigh significantly more than gorillas, with some sources noting weights up to 1500 lbs for larger specimens like Kodiak bears, a close relative. This mass provides a substantial advantage in physical confrontations, allowing the bear to overpower the gorilla through sheer weight. Gorillas, while muscular and strong, typically weigh less, with silverbacks averaging 300–485 lbs, depending on the subspecies (e.g., mountain or western lowland).

Speed and Agility
Speed is another critical factor, with grizzly bears capable of reaching speeds up to 35 mph, far surpassing the gorilla’s top speed of 20 mph. This speed advantage means the bear can initiate charges or evade attacks more effectively, potentially catching the gorilla off-guard. In open environments, this could be decisive, allowing the bear to use its momentum to inflict damage.

Strength and Weapons
The gorilla’s strength is remarkable, with research suggesting it can lift up to 1800 lbs and exert a grip strength of around 500–700 pounds-force, potentially capable of crushing objects like a crocodile’s skull, though this is debated. However, in a fight, the bear’s claws—several inches long and designed for slashing—are a significant offensive weapon. These claws can cause deep, bleeding wounds, which could lead to the gorilla’s incapacitation through blood loss. The bear’s bite, while slightly less forceful at 1200–1250 PSI compared to the gorilla’s 1300 PSI, is still sufficient to cause severe damage, especially when combined with its claws.

Fighting Experience and Behavior
Grizzly bears are apex predators with experience in hunting and combat, often taking down large prey like moose or elk. This predatory background equips them with strategies for lethal encounters. Gorillas, conversely, are primarily herbivorous, with their aggression typically reserved for intra-species dominance displays rather than predatory combat. While gorillas can be aggressive when threatened, their lack of experience in killing other large animals may put them at a disadvantage in a death match.

Environmental Considerations
The environment plays a role in the fight’s dynamics. In a forested area with trees, the gorilla might attempt to climb for safety or gain a height advantage, leveraging its superior climbing ability. However, research indicates that grizzly bears can climb trees, particularly younger ones, though adults may struggle due to their weight. Sources like A-Z Animals confirm that grizzly cubs are skilled climbers, and adults can ascend trees with ladder-like branches, potentially following the gorilla. This reduces the gorilla’s ability to escape via trees, especially in a fight to the death where the bear would likely persist.
In open fields, the bear’s speed and size would likely dominate, allowing it to charge and use its claws effectively. The gorilla’s strategy might involve trying to grapple and use its strength, but the bear’s thick hide and fat layer (up to 7 inches in Kodiak bears) could mitigate blunt force, making it harder for the gorilla to inflict fatal damage.

Expert and Community Opinions
Multiple sources, including Xavier News, Animal Matchup, and All About Powerlifting, lean toward the grizzly bear winning, citing its size, claws, and combat experience. For instance, Xavier News concludes that the bear’s claws and weight give it the edge, while All About Powerlifting estimates the bear would win 9 out of 10 times. Community discussions on platforms like Quora (Quora) also predominantly favor the bear, though some argue the gorilla’s strength and intelligence could make it competitive, especially in close quarters.

Grip Strength and Skull Crushing Debate
A point of contention is whether the gorilla’s grip strength—estimated at 500–700 pounds-force—could crush the bear’s skull. Research suggests the force required to crush a human skull is around 1000–2000 pounds-force, and bear skulls, being thicker, would likely require even more. Given the gorilla’s grip strength falls short of this, and the difficulty of maintaining such a grip in a dynamic fight, it’s unlikely the gorilla could achieve this. The bear’s claws, conversely, are more likely to cause fatal injuries through slashing.
Unexpected Detail: Climbing Abilities
An interesting detail is that grizzly bears can climb trees, though not as efficiently as gorillas. This ability, documented in sources like A-Z Animals, means the gorilla’s potential strategy of escaping to trees is less effective, as the bear could follow, especially if motivated by the fight’s stakes.

Conclusion
Given the bear’s advantages in size, speed, weapons, and fighting experience, and considering the environmental and behavioral factors, the evidence leans toward the grizzly bear winning in a fight to the death. While the gorilla’s strength and intelligence are notable, they are unlikely to overcome the bear’s offensive and defensive capabilities in a lethal encounter. This conclusion aligns with the majority of expert and community opinions, though the debate highlights the complexity and variability of such hypothetical matchups.

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Couldn't a gorilla pick up a 200lb rock and start bashing the bear in the head?

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No…

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While a .30-06 round can penetrate a grizzly bear's skull, the thick skull bone and the possibility of a glancing shot mean that a round could potentially bounce off or become lodged, especially with a head-on shot.

Grizzly bear skulls are thick, with a bone thickness of around 1 to 1.5 inches.

Potential for Deflection:
The blunt, rounded shape of the skull can cause bullets to glance off or become lodged without penetrating.

.30-06 Effectiveness:
While a .30-06 is a powerful cartridge, it's not guaranteed to penetrate a grizzly's skull, especially with a head-on shot.

Better Shot Placement:
For a grizzly bear, a well-placed shot to the "boiler room" (heart and lungs) is generally considered more effective than a head shot

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Isn’t a Gorilla faster?

Hell, no…

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For 50 or 100 yards a Grizzly can go faster than any horse, and keep it up indefinitely. It is well known that in the spring of the year, the Indian ponies that have wintered out and are in poor condition would very commonly become the prey of the Grizzly, who can now catch them on the open plain.

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With one swipe of a Grizzly’s paw and massive claws it could damn near decapitate a Gorilla and very easily break it’s neck.

This would be as big of a mismatch in the Grizzlies favor as human vs Gorilla would be in the gorillas favor. How people even think this would be close at all really makes
You realize how stupid some people are. The largest or 2nd largest predator on land depending on how you measure vs a mostly vegetarian ape that is smaller, weaker, and with less ways to kill. Yeah that ought to last about 10 seconds

Looks like Andre

In a no-rules brawl, it’s tough to call. Andre’s size might overwhelm initially; he could theoretically toss Arnold or Wilt around like ragdolls. But Arnold’s strength and cunning could let him target weak points (knees, joints) if he dodges the giant’s grasp. Wilt’s height and athleticism might keep him in the mix, landing quick strikes, though he’d lack the brute force to finish Andre fast.

If it’s one-on-one-on-one, Andre probably takes it through sheer dominance—size wins in chaos unless teamwork happens, which it wouldn’t here. If Arnold and Wilt somehow teamed up first, they might wear Andre down, but that’s unlikely in a free-for-all. My gut says Andre the Giant walks away (or limps away) victorious, with Arnold a close second for his tenacity, and Wilt third due to less fighting know-how.

I had no idea the discrepancy was that big lol. Bears are huge.

About the only scenario I could figure where the gorilla wins is if it could somehow jump on top of the bear’s back and take it to the ground, such that the bear is on its back, and then managing to choke it out before the bear can break free. But I don’t even know if gorillas know to do something like that, and I doubt one would actually succeed. I only mention it because I think a gorilla has actual 0% chance of winning a blunt force fight, so strangulation is basically the only tool available.

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For 50 or 100 yards a Grizzly can go faster than any horse, and keep it up indefinitely. It is well known that in the spring of the year, the Indian ponies that have wintered out and are in poor condition would very commonly become the prey of the Grizzly, who can now catch them on the open plain.

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That is insane. I knew they were fast but thought more sprinters

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The bull would win by thrusting horns upward into the bear. The bear would win by forcing the bull down to the ground.

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There have been many fights between bulls and bears with mixed results. If you want a great fictional account the fantastic book, Lonesome Dove, has one. Neither really won, but the bull did drive off the bear, even though its side was flayed open and it was missing a horn when it was over. Of course, it was fictional.

Old news story about arranged fights between the animals

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Can't be serious.

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What can frick with a grizzly bear then?