172 has more usable power on the road (as long as you dont fuck with the port timings) so that gets my vote
don't bodge a 172 in a zip it's silly. most power you'll get with any reliability is about 15bhp, same as a standard engine with a 172 on it.
172's give more power with reliability to get 172 sort of power out of a 50cc you loose all reliability. However if you are even thinking of fitting one to a zip don't do it. Buy a bike made for it.