BoxRec

This has always been a tough category for me to sort out through the years since there have been so many great fights. For this particular list, please exclude fights that were not filmed for reasons that it is impossible to obtain and view. Fights do not need to be title bouts or in any certain order, unless anyone feels up to the task.

I know I am calling for TOP 25, but here is a list of 25 great fights (not necessarily top 25 greatest and definitely not in order) to get the circuits working for everyone.

1. Micky Ward vs. Arturo Gatti I
2. Riddick Bowe vs. Evander Holyfield I
3. Marvin Hagler vs. Thomas Hearns
4. Nigel Benn vs. Gerald McClellan
5. Diego Corrales vs. Jose Luis Castillo I
6. Ivan Robinson vs. Arturo Gatti I
7. Muhammad Ali vs. Joe Frazier III
8. George Foreman vs. Ron Lyle
9. Roberto Duran vs. Sugar Ray Leonard I
10. Micky Ward vs. Emmanuel Burton
11. Erik Morales vs. Marco Antonio Barrera I
12. Aaron Pryor vs. Alexis Arguello I
13. Jose Luis Castillo vs. Cesar Bazan
14. Michael Moorer vs. Bert Cooper
15. Micky Ward vs. Shea Neary
16. Evander Holyfield vs. Dwight Qawi I
17. Cesar Soto vs. Luisito Espinosa II
18. Shane Mosley vs. Oscar de la Hoya I
19. Sugar Ray Leonard vs. Thomas Hearns I
20. Rocky Marciano vs. Ezzard Charles I
21. Jersey Joe Walcott vs. Ezzard Charles III
22. Ezzard Charles vs. Lloyd Marshall II
23. Naseem Hamed vs. Kevin Kelley
24. Alexis Arguello vs. Ray Mancini
25. Jack Dempsey vs. Luis Firpo

Respectable list. I know you didnt put in order but I personally think Foreman vs Lyle was the greatest fight ever. Did you ever see the first Carbrajal vs Gonzalez fight? I think it was better than a few on your list.

The greatest fight I've ever seen is the first Duran-Leonard fight, and I've seen pretty much all of the big exciting battles over the years.

theone wrote:Respectable list. I know you didnt put in order but I personally think Foreman vs Lyle was the greatest fight ever. Did you ever see the first Carbrajal vs Gonzalez fight? I think it was better than a few on your list.

No, I've never seen that fight. I tried to only put fights that I've seen on the list so I could objectively stamp my approval on them. I've always wanted to see that fight, though. I've heard it was great.

theone wrote:Respectable list. I know you didnt put in order but I personally think Foreman vs Lyle was the greatest fight ever. Did you ever see the first Carbrajal vs Gonzalez fight? I think it was better than a few on your list.

I hate the Foreman-Lyle fight. I see it as very sloppy and uncoordinated. I think it's very overrated.

A fight like Duran-Leonard, that's my cup of tea. Excellent offensive and defensive skills on display, two superstars, lots of action, inside fighting, outside fighting, competitiveness, fifteen rounds... Yea...

DoubleM wrote:

theone wrote:Respectable list. I know you didnt put in order but I personally think Foreman vs Lyle was the greatest fight ever. Did you ever see the first Carbrajal vs Gonzalez fight? I think it was better than a few on your list.

I hate the Foreman-Lyle fight. I see it as very sloppy and uncoordinated. I think it's very overrated.

A fight like Duran-Leonard, that's my cup of tea. Excellent offensive and defensive skills on display, two superstars, lots of action, inside fighting, outside fighting, competitiveness, fifteen rounds... Yea...

Yeah, Foreman and Lyle fought a sloppy and uncoordinated fight, this much I agree with. It still was a breathtaking example of savagery at its finest. That fourth round was a classic.

evsbrn, u liked charles-marciano I over marciano-walcott I???

im suprised u didnt include walcott-marciano I




also did u ever see demarco-basillio ??? that was a great fight

BrocktonBlockbuster49 wrote:evsbrn, u liked charles-marciano I over marciano-walcott I???

im suprised u didnt include walcott-marciano I




also did u ever see demarco-basillio ??? that was a great fight

None of those fights were in order, they were just first to come to my head. I was just trying to give examples to get everyones brains working.

I probably liked Marciano-Charles I better anyway. Marciano-Walcott I was more dramatic though with the sudden end. I'm probably just partial to Ezzard Charles since he is one of my historical favorites.

i wish there was a tape of the jack blackburn -sam langford fight in 1904 in marboro,ma. Ringsiders who saw it say it was one of the best fights ever at the time.

come on now Decagon! Gatti Ward I is unquestionably a top 25 fight of all time. It doesnt matter if the fighter(s) are not all time greats, the question was.....what are your 25 greatest fights. What do you have against one of Boxings fiercest competitors of all time, Mickey Ward? You should be greatfull that what he lacked in pure skill he made up for in a heart you could only dream of! Thats why he was in so many great fights, because he wanted to win NO MATTER WHAT! Dont discredit him and others because they arent HOFs.

McGuigan-Cruz was a good fight.

Barry got soem early momentum. Then Cruz took over. Barry came back with a fantastic late rally and looked like he'd turned the figth around and then gets dropped twice in the final round. Great stuff.

Duran-Leonard I has everything but a knockdown.
Hagler-Hearns
Pryor-Arguello
Marciano-Walcott
Marciano-Charles
Leonard-Hearns I and II
Ali-Frazier I and III
Holyfield-Bowe I, II and III

Moore Durell #1 has to be one of the best fights ever.

I'm glad to see no one putting Hagler/Leonard down. All that fight did was prove you only need to fight for the last 15 seconds of a round to still get the win. How a judge scored that fight 118-110 and can honestly say Leonard won 10 or 12 rounds is ridiculous. That's my "I love Marvin" rant for the day....take it in stride.

Hagler vs Hearns
Wilfredo Gomez vs. Lupe Pintor
Wilfredo Gomez vs. Salvador Sanchez
Trinidad vs Vargas
Trinidad vs Mayorga
Pryor vs Arguello
Arguello vs Escalera
Leonard vs Hearns
Leonard vs Duran
Barrera vs Morales
Gatti vs Ward
Bowe vs Holyfield
Castillo vs Corrales
Ali vs Frasier
Ivan Robinson vs Gatti

borinken25 wrote:Hagler vs Hearns
Wilfredo Gomez vs. Lupe Pintor
Wilfredo Gomez vs. Salvador Sanchez
Trinidad vs Vargas
Trinidad vs Mayorga
Pryor vs Arguello
Arguello vs Escalera
Leonard vs Hearns
Leonard vs Duran
Barrera vs Morales
Gatti vs Ward
Bowe vs Holyfield
Castillo vs Corrales
Ali vs Frasier
Ivan Robinson vs Gatti

Bori

Sanchez-Gomez was a bit one sided for me. It's surprising just how easily Sanchez dominates him.

borinken25 wrote:Hagler vs Hearns
Wilfredo Gomez vs. Lupe Pintor
Wilfredo Gomez vs. Salvador Sanchez
Trinidad vs Vargas
Trinidad vs Mayorga
Pryor vs Arguello
Arguello vs Escalera
Leonard vs Hearns
Leonard vs Duran
Barrera vs Morales
Gatti vs Ward
Bowe vs Holyfield
Castillo vs Corrales
Ali vs Frasier
Ivan Robinson vs Gatti

I've never seen Gomez-Pintor but I've read about it. Was the fight that amazing?

A few more to consider:

Chacon-Boza Edwards
Ali-Foreman
Saad Muhammad-Lopez
Norton-Holmes
Graziano-Zale fights.

Bobby Chacon vs. Bazooka Limon. These two didnt seem to like each other very much.

Chaves vs Taylor 1 deserves a mention I feel.

Everyone is chiming in some good examples of pugilism at its finest, but does anyone feel up to the daunting task of making a list, in order, of his or her top 25 fights?

Chacon v Limon III should be on everyones list, near the top. Its an absolute was over 15 rounds. One of the best fights ever without any shadow of a doubt.

nickd wrote:Chacon v Limon III should be on everyones list, near the top. Its an absolute was over 15 rounds. One of the best fights ever without any shadow of a doubt.

Now that I think back at this brawl wasnt this one of the fights that Ferdie Pacheco was calling for N. B.C that he was hysterical about wanting the ref to stop cuz of the punishment Chacon was taking? He was later called The fright Doctor.

expug wrote:

nickd wrote:Chacon v Limon III should be on everyones list, near the top. Its an absolute was over 15 rounds. One of the best fights ever without any shadow of a doubt.

Now that I think back at this brawl wasnt this one of the fights that Ferdie Pacheco was calling for N. B.C that he was hysterical about wanting the ref to stop cuz of the punishment Chacon was taking? He was later called The fright Doctor.

I recall Pacheco doing that for Chacon vs. Boza-Edwards II and thinking "what an idiot, he's obviously firing back and getting in his good licks." Maybe Pacheco was right, look where Chacon is now.

evndrbsn wrote:

expug wrote:

nickd wrote:Chacon v Limon III should be on everyones list, near the top. Its an absolute was over 15 rounds. One of the best fights ever without any shadow of a doubt.

Now that I think back at this brawl wasnt this one of the fights that Ferdie Pacheco was calling for N. B.C that he was hysterical about wanting the ref to stop cuz of the punishment Chacon was taking? He was later called The fright Doctor.

I recall Pacheco doing that for Chacon vs. Boza-Edwards II and thinking "what an idiot, he's obviously firing back and getting in his good licks." Maybe Pacheco was right, look where Chacon is now.

Ah thats the fight.

evndrbsn wrote:

expug wrote:

nickd wrote:Chacon v Limon III should be on everyones list, near the top. Its an absolute was over 15 rounds. One of the best fights ever without any shadow of a doubt.

Now that I think back at this brawl wasnt this one of the fights that Ferdie Pacheco was calling for N. B.C that he was hysterical about wanting the ref to stop cuz of the punishment Chacon was taking? He was later called The fright Doctor.

I recall Pacheco doing that for Chacon vs. Boza-Edwards II and thinking "what an idiot, he's obviously firing back and getting in his good licks." Maybe Pacheco was right, look where Chacon is now.

he did that with the Qawi-Eddie Davis war as well, when Davis was getting hammered in rd1. but ED came back, rallied hard and didn't get KO'd until the tenth of an excellent fight