Unlucky fighters...

[Steveh583]

The talk on here lately about Michael Brodie vs injin chi got me thinking about boxers who had no luck in their career. Brodie was definitely one, I always felt bobby vanzie got ill treated by the sport, and Ryan Rhodes had a tough few years. Any others spring to mind? I would state the obvious herol Graham tho he did have three cracks at world honours.

[littlepug]

Danny Porter, 9 shots at various titles from area to world and not one win, came close more than once though.

[Coco]

Danny Porter, 9 shots at various titles from area to world and not one win, came close more than once though.

Porter was a lucky fighter, to get all those shots, more so it demonstrates that there weren't many fighters at the weight.

[Delta Jay]

Kevin Satchell.

[Steveh583]

Kevin Satchell.

Forgot all about him.

[Fray Bentos]

Johnny Clark - British, European and Commonwealth bantamweight champion who didn't get his world title shot and he was a world class fighter.

Henry Nissen - an Australian boxer born in a concentration camp - turned down a world title shot at flyweight and got himself stopped in a Commonwealth title defence before retiring - really interesting story if you fancy looking it up on Google.

[hitman_hatton1]

oba carr - 3 title shots and he had to fight, tito, quartey (lost a majority decision) & de la hoya.

frankie randall - chavez rematch was just an awful rip off.

billy collins jr -luis resto glove debacle and subsequently dies in car crash.

[Coco]

Imagine how life would have changed for Meldrick Taylor if he had beaten JCC

[margaret thatcher]

People used to talk like it was some injustice Jamie Moore never got a world title shot, are they right?

[margaret thatcher]

Not sure about Herol tbh, he got a lot of title fights/high level fights whereas there are a lot of good fighters who struggle to even get 1 opportunity. I think he just struggled to really put a stamp on when it mattered...which is more of a shortcoming of his own.

Like, I don't think he was unlucky at all to lose to Jackson or Brewer, it was his own problem getting caught and stopped and we see it here multiple times where he boxed very well but couldn't hold it together...repeated occurance. He got stopped late another time too I think also after being ahead?

The McCallum fight was close but certainly not a robbery imo, and it's pretty standard anyway for fighters to have some fights go against them that they arguably could've won

[Deserter]

Imagine how life would have changed for Meldrick Taylor if he had beaten JCC

Pure speculation on both our parts, but I don't think it would have made much difference. That fight took so much out of him he'd never have been the same fighter after it IMO even if he'd got the win.

[Deserter]

Not sure about Herol tbh, he got a lot of title fights/high level fights whereas there are a lot of good fighters who struggle to even get 1 opportunity. I think he just struggled to really put a stamp on when it mattered...which is more of a shortcoming of his own.

Like, I don't think he was unlucky at all to lose to Jackson or Brewer, it was his own problem getting caught and stopped and we see it here multiple times where he boxed very well but couldn't hold it together...repeated occurance. He got stopped late another time too I think also after being ahead?

The McCallum fight was close but certainly not a robbery imo, and it's pretty standard anyway for fighters to have some fights go against them that they arguably could've won

Agree with this completely. Kalambay was another example of his failure to really impose himself when it mattered.

[Coco]

Imagine how life would have changed for Meldrick Taylor if he had beaten JCC

Pure speculation on both our parts, but I don't think it would have made much difference. That fight took so much out of him he'd never have been the same fighter after it IMO even if he'd got the win.

Actually I kinda meant that, for me he was never the same again. If he had got the win and could carry on as before........

[fizzjambo]

People used to talk like it was some injustice Jamie Moore never got a world title shot, are they right?

I’ve not heard so many people say that, more that he underachieved a bit.

Each time he was getting close to a world title fight he lost to firstly Duran, then Rhodes. From memory neither was controversial

[Deserter]

Pure speculation on both our parts, but I don't think it would have made much difference. That fight took so much out of him he'd never have been the same fighter after it IMO even if he'd got the win.

Actually I kinda meant that, for me he was never the same again. If he had got the win and could carry on as before........

[ThereByTheGrace]

Michael watson. Beat benn. Argubly beat eubank and really unfortunate rematch v eubank.

[Noxy]

Not sure about Herol tbh, he got a lot of title fights/high level fights whereas there are a lot of good fighters who struggle to even get 1 opportunity. I think he just struggled to really put a stamp on when it mattered...which is more of a shortcoming of his own.

Like, I don't think he was unlucky at all to lose to Jackson or Brewer, it was his own problem getting caught and stopped and we see it here multiple times where he boxed very well but couldn't hold it together...repeated occurance. He got stopped late another time too I think also after being ahead?

The McCallum fight was close but certainly not a robbery imo, and it's pretty standard anyway for fighters to have some fights go against them that they arguably could've won

He was frozen out though. The obvious examples being Nigel and Chris not meeting him. He was good enough to win a title and if the cookie had crumbled differently he would have done. I guess his box office appeal just wasn’t there. He did fade sometimes but he also didn’t fade when he was on his game.

[Noxy]

Imagine how life would have changed for Meldrick Taylor if he had beaten JCC

Imagine how it would have changed for JCC!

[margaret thatcher]

Frozen out yet still 3 world title fights, despite losing every one of them. Not bad.

It was a repeated occurrence with him boxing well then losing. Not bad luck other than his own shortcomings there. Could never put it beyond doubt or last when it mattered most.

His luck really wasn't all that bad in what is often a very hardluck game for many fighters. People feel too sorry for him.

[Noxy]

Yes, I take your point. Three world title fights is good going, especially when you're not necessarily a sought after fighter like Frank Bruno, for example. But do you not think his title fights came against some rather fearsome competition? I would have backed him against someone like DeWitt or Barkley. He was, like I said before, out there like the elephant in the room when Benn and Eubank, then Watson, were hogging the middle/supermiddle headlines at the time.

I don't necessarily feel sorry for him. Boxing is just like that. But to me he does stand out as someone who was good enough to win one of the four belts.

[margaret thatcher]

He wasn't good enough when it mattered, there are guys like that and he was one of them, it was just as much of who he was as his skills were. He got a number of big opportunities and could never do enough, even despite getting multiple of these fights favourably at home. It was his own shortcoming and I really don't doubt it would've happened yet again if he did fight the likes of Benn or Eubank. Easy to picture....Graham starts red hot but then eventually gets caught up to and beaten.

It was really a consistent thing throughout his career too. As a younger guy, looking red hot but then failing in the big step up. And then even in his final comeback, despite being older, he was looking as good as ever taking out a guy like Chris Johnson, but then got KO'd by Chuck Brewer.

[Steveh583]

oba carr - 3 title shots and he had to fight, tito, quartey (lost a majority decision) & de la hoya.

frankie randall - chavez rematch was just an awful rip off.

billy collins jr -luis resto glove debacle and subsequently dies in car crash.

Good shouts Edward!!! Hope all is well btw

[Steveh583]

People used to talk like it was some injustice Jamie Moore never got a world title shot, are they right?

He should've got a pop at a title after beating that spainish stalwart who's name escapes me. He was a good little fighter who deserved a payday, but it's hardly the biggest travesty.

[margaret thatcher]

Loads of fighters have these 'maybe they should've' cases, I don't think he really 'deserves' any special place in terms of unluckiness, he had all sorts of shots and good opportunities including at home


his record vs world class opponents was probably like 1-5 or something

[Syntax Error]

Razor Ruddock was a little bit unlucky.

He was supposed to challenge Tyson in Canada in '89, but the fight got cancelled and never rearranged.

When he eventually fights Tyson, it isn't for the title, but a fight for the right to; he gets stopped prematurely, although he wouldn't have won as evidenced by the rematch, however, he is again unlucky bearing in mind, that he was still the number two contender and when Tyson went away, Ruddock should rightly have been next in-line for a shot at champion, Evander Holyfield, but never got that opportunity.

Fast forward a year and a bit and again on the cusp of world honours, signs to fight up and coming Lennox Lewis who came of age big style and smashed Ruddock out of the arena.

Razor would never reach elite level again.