11. Deontay Wilder – Tyson Fury, December 1, 2018: Wilder (left) is the most attractive boxer since Mike Tyson. When he prepared to defend his WBC title against Tyson Fury, “The Bronze Plane” had won 40 matches. Meanwhile, the British “King of the Gang” had only won 27 matches. The first match took place with the advantage in favor of Fury, but three judges scored it a draw. This led to controversy and two subsequent matches. In the first rematch in February 2020, Fury won by technical knockout in the seventh round. In the second rematch in October 2021, the British boxer continued to win by knockout in the 11th round. The reward for “King of the Gang” after these two victories was the WBC belt and the vacant The Ring belt. 10. Rocky Marciano – Ezzard Charles, June 17, 1954: In the sixth round, after a collision, Marciano’s (right) nostril was torn to the bone. After that, blood continuously flowed and throughout the seventh round, he was warned by the referee to stop the fight. However, in the eighth round, Marciano threw a series of punches to knock Charles out. “I love the world title too much to lose it over a little blood,” Marciano said after successfully defending his NYSAC, NBA and The Ring belts. After his 47th victory, he won two more fights to retire as the only undefeated heavyweight in history.
9. Mike Tyson – Buster Douglas, February 11, 1990: Today, many people still consider this the biggest shock in boxing history. Before the match against Douglas, Tyson was at his peak with 37 wins. He dominated all three heavyweight titles of the WBC, WBA and IBF. Meanwhile, Douglas won 30 fights, lost four and drew one. According to the media, Tyson despised his opponent so much that he partied all night before the fight and spent a week partying with three girls. Douglas was knocked down by Tyson in the eighth round, but managed to get up and fight back. At 35 seconds of the tenth round, the underdog threw four consecutive punches to knock out Tyson. The unexpected victory helped Douglas become the new absolute champion. Meanwhile, Tyson returned with four wins, but was arrested for rape in July 1991.
8. Mike Tyson – Evander Holyfield, November 9, 1996: Released from prison in March 1995, it took Tyson just over a year to win four fights. He also regained the WBA and WBC belts. Meanwhile, Evander Holyfield was considered a washed-up boxer. But what the audience did not expect happened when Holyfield won by technical knockout in the 11th round. Tyson’s side accused his opponent of frequent head-butting, but the referee concluded that it was accidental. More than half a year later, the two boxers fought again. This time, Tyson was disqualified for biting off his opponent’s ear in the third round. He became the first boxer in more than 50 years to be disqualified due to an accident.
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7. Evander Holyfield – Riddick Bowe, November 13, 1992: In late 1990, Holyfield defeated Buster Douglas to win the WBC, WBA and IBF belts. At this time, he was at the peak of his form with 28 wins. But that streak had to stop when he met challenger Riddick Bowe. The boxer five years younger dominated the entire 12 rounds and was scored the winner by all three judges.
The two boxers fought each other twice in 1993 and 1995. Bowe lost the first time, but won the second time. It was also Bowe’s only defeat besides 43 victories.
6. Rocky Marciano – Jersey Joe Walcott, September 23, 1953: Marciano (right) became the challenger to the absolute champion Joe Walcott after 42 wins. But in the first round, he was knocked down by his opponent. This was one of the two rare times Marciano was knocked down in his undefeated career. The match was in favor of Joe Walcott until the 13th round. At this time, Marciano suddenly hooked the champion and made him kneel with his arm around the ropes. The blow left Joe Walcott motionless for a long time and the world had a new champion. When they met again half a year later, Marciano won in the first round.
5. Cassius Clay – Sonny Liston, February 25, 1964: 43 of 46 sportswriters predicted Liston would defend his absolute title against Clay (right), who had not yet changed his name to Muhammad Ali. Clay, meanwhile, retorted: “If you want to lose money, bet on Liston.” And that sarcasm became a reality after only six rounds. After surviving Liston’s attempt to win early, Clay counterattacked in the third round. The 22-year-old puncher caused a bruise under the champion’s right eye and a laceration under the champion’s left eye. After the sixth round, Liston’s shoulder was so painful that he could not move. The champion had to surrender and Clay took over all four of his WBC, WBA, NYSAC and The Ring belts.
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Also in 1964, Clay changed his name to Muhammad Ali in Islam. Three years later, at the peak of his 29-fight winning streak, he was banned from fighting for refusing to be drafted into the army and for opposing the Vietnam War. “I had no reason to fight the Viet Cong. The Viet Cong never called me a nigger,” Ali said. He was later sentenced to five years in prison, but was released on bail pending appeal. He did not fight from March 1967 to October 1970, when the sentence was overturned.
4. Jack Johnson – James J Jeffries, July 4, 1910: The fight is also known as “The Fight
It took place after Jack Johnson became the first African-American heavyweight champion of the world. Meanwhile, in an effort to restore glory to white boxers, undefeated champion Jeffries agreed to return after a six-year retirement. But his efforts to train and lose weight did not bring any miracles to Jeffries. Johnson dominated the entire fight, before a hook sent Jeffries through the ropes and nearly falling off the mat. After his opponent returned, Johnson continued to knock him down with a head kick. At this point, Jeffries’ coach asked for a defeat to avoid being knocked out. After the fight, racial riots broke out across the US, killing more than 20 people.
3. George Foreman – Muhammad Ali, October 30, 1974: The fight is also known as “The Roar in the Jungle”. Returning to competition in late 1970, Ali soon won the NABF belt. Meanwhile, George Foreman was the WBA, WBC and IBF champion. The fight was The match attracted a television audience of about one billion, equivalent to a quarter of the world’s population at the time. Foreman was considered the better boxer due to his youth, but Ali was more accurate and had better movement. Ali even actively invited his opponent to attack by leaning on the rope to dodge the punch, causing Foreman to miss, then counterattack. This tactic later became known as the “Rope A Dope” rope tactic. Ali also teased his opponent while fighting. In the middle of the match, Foreman began to tire. In the seventh round, Ali leaned into his opponent’s ear and asked, “Is that all you got, George?” A round later, Ali delivered a series of knockouts. The victory helped him become the absolute champion for the third time. 2. Muhammad Ali – Joe Frazier, October 1, 1975: The two boxers played their third match, after Frazier won on points in the first match in 1971 and Ali won on points in the rematch in 1974. The 38-degree heat of Manila, Philippines, made both men tired quickly. Ali relied on the “Rope A Dope” strategy, but also suffered many blows from his opponent four years younger. When Frazier was exhausted in the 12th round, Ali threw many sharp punches that caused his opponent to swell up in the left eye and tear near the right eye. When the bell signaled the start of the 15th round, the coach refused to let Frazier enter the ring to continue. Frazier finished with both eyes swollen, while Ali sat down, gasping for breath. Afterwards, the champion admitted that the fight was “a close call to death” and “Frazier was the greatest boxer of all time next to me”. With this victory, Ali successfully defended his title as the undisputed champion for the fourth time since his victory over Foreman in 1974.
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1. Joe Frazier – Muhammad Ali, March 8, 1971: The first match between the two boxers was considered one of the “Fights of the Century”. At this time, after successfully appealing his prison sentence, Ali won two more matches to extend his winning streak to 31. He also succeeded in conquering the NABF belt. Meanwhile, Frazier was dominating the WBA, WBC and The Ring belts. Each boxer claimed to be the legitimate undisputed champion. But with his youth and better form, Frazier dominated his new opponent. He constantly moved, ducked to avoid attacks, then counterattacked to put pressure on Ali. In round 11, Frazier landed a left hook that made his opponent stagger. In round 15, Frazier continued to land a left hook that knocked Ali down. All three judges scored the victory for the champion.
