BoxRec

Just interested to know who is your favourite boxer who never made it to the big time? Whether its a local club fighter you enjoyed watching or someone who had the talent but didn't go on with it...

I always thought John Meekins was headed for the big time........but didn't quite make it. :(

I think i would say Herol graham, always unlucky in the big time fights. Im sure if he had won a world title he would have excelled, and made the big time with big fights.

Herol Graham did make it big - he had 3 world title shots, and won British and European crowns.

Greg Page.Could have been way bigger than what he was if certain variables were right.

Vinnie Curto

When I lived in Pa, I got a really good conversation w/ Steve Little former WBA super middleweight champ. Afterwards I always rooted for him during his career, until his unfortunate death from cancer in 2000.

Nile4000 wrote:Greg Page.Could have been way bigger than what he was if certain variables were right.

Funny you mention him. Mine was George Chaplin. Growing up in baltimore,MD. He along with Vince Pettway were the only guys from my area to hit the big time.

Chaplin was robbed twice against Greg Page in a horrid way. First fight should have been 7-3 George and the second one was about 10-2.

He beat an old Shavers, lost a close fight to Dokes and eventually got crushed by Cooney.

Others were

Curtis Parker,Hard Rock Green,Clint Jackson,Alex Ramos

Yeah, I love Middleweights

John Locicero was another one. When I was 10 or 11 I saw him fight Caveman Lee on ESPN. Anyone who has never seen that fight has missed out on one of the GOAT. He also knocked out Tony Danza.

Guys who achieved a high level but not nearly as high as I thought they would

Howard Davis jr, Hilmer Kenty

From my country: Hasan Al, Frank Olsen and Mehmet Erarslan.

Others: Charley Burley and Laszlo Papp

Damaen Kelly.

Paul "scrap iron" Ryan

Ibar Arrington

errol christie

Jeff McCracken

Jeff McCracken

Ed Mahone

Jeff McCracken? He was terrible........you could see his train wreck coming in the amateurs.

charlie "whitelightning'' brown

The Mulleted Wonder himself....
Brian Sutherland!!!!!
http://youtube.com/watch?v=UTmfFLCKErY

Out of the HW's...theres quite a few I liked, but they were more or less over hyped journeyman/club fighters/ tomato cans....

Tommy Morrison, Peter McNeeley, Duane Bobick, were just a few...I can probably say to a limited degree that Joe Mesi was another favorite, though I personally never thought he would go anywhere in the sport; possibly a title shot, but never win one himself. Unfortunately, he never even got to get that far. Gerry Cooney and Tex Cobb were other favorites of mine. All name opponents, but never really hit the big times, and if they did, it went just as quick as it came.

Lower class fighters...there's bunches, but possibly my favorite was the greatly under-rated Spider Webb, one of the better MW contenders in history, who never quite managed to have his time in the spot light.

..i liked oba carr....and i guess his talent did take him as far as he could go....did get a title shot...but just wasn't quite good enough to go all the way....

ringsider wrote:Jeff McCracken? He was terrible........you could see his train wreck coming in the amateurs.

hey that's what I thought the thread was about....the no hopers that you held out hope for......but now I know in addition to his other flaws he may have secretly been a southpaw....something that somehow got by me till now.

Tony Mundine. He got one shot and it just happened to be against Carlos Monzon.
Also Hector Thompson. Same scenario but he came up against a guy called Roberto Duran. How stiff is that.

Tony Ayala. Nobody could stop him, maybe not even Hagler.

Collins2000 wrote:errol christie

Yep, my first thought...

Bert Cooper ... a dangerous puncher and never in boring fights. Just wish dude could've kept himself clean. Drug problems always kept him up and down and up and down.