Name late replacement examples who beat reigning champions

Obviously, Andy Ruiz over Joshua. Ruiz was dumped by Bob Arum because Ruiz was so ordinary to awful for so many years. Ruiz was picked up by Al Haymon and got a slot on a PBC undercard against Dimitrenko. A month later, after Jarrell Miller failed his prefight drug test, Ruiz got the call and won three of the four heavyweight title belts. A pretty whirlwind experience.

Going back a ways, Arturo Frias was a late sub for Gonzalo Montellano when he stepped in and knocked out Claude Noel for the WBA Lightweight title. That was a big deal at the time. Noel had won the vacant title in an upset against 'Gato' Gonzales, who was supposed to be the new superstar. And in Noel's first defense, he loses to Frias, who wasn't on anyone's radar and, if I remember correctly, came in really late as a fill in.

Chris Byrd was a late replacement for Razor Ruddock when Byrd upset Vitali Klitschko for the WBO Heavyweight title. Byrd was fighting on ESPN shows making like $10,000 a fight. Byrd was supposed to fight Lawrence Clay-Bey (the rising U.S. Olympian) and become 'just a name' who Clay-Bey knocked off to build his rep. But, during a prefight physical like a day before the fight, the doctors noticed Bey had an eye issue. So the fight was cancelled. Meanwhile, HBO was hyping Vitali and thought they'd bring out a name like Ruddock for Vitali to starch. Can't remember what happened to Razor. But, since Byrd was free, HBO offered the fight to him and he jumped at it ... and basically made Chris Byrd's whole career. And Clay-Bey returned in the fall on the Lewis-Tua undercard and lost a war to Cliff Etienne, basically derailing his whole career.

 

One of my all-time favorites was the case with Steve Robinson, who stepped in when the WBO Featherweight champion Ruben Palacios tested positive for HIV. Ruben's title defense against John Davison was changed into a fight for the vacant title. But since it was such short notice, they brought in local journeyman Robinson for Davison to win a vacant title against. The WBO gave Robinson a quickie rating for appearances sake. And Robinson won and went on to a pretty solid reign. Then again, Davison wasn't the champ. But, I like that one.

 

Pipino Cuevas was a late sub for Jose Napoles when Cuevas destroyed Angel Espada to win the WBA Welterweight title. Espada was going to defend against the comebacking Napoles, but Napoles asked for a delay. Espada fought the journeyman Cuevas, who had just lost to Andy Price a couple weeks earlier, instead, and Pipino blew him away and then went on to a ferocious string of defenses becoming one of the most feared welters of his day.

 

Bonecrusher Smith was a late replacement for Tony Tubbs when Smith upset Tim Witherspoon and stopped him in one round to win the WBA Heavyweight title. Both Tubbs and Spoon had previously beaten Smith, who was supposed to fight Mitch 'Blood' Green. But Tubbs pulled out of the fight, and Smith was offered up as a late replacement.

Mitch Green famously threatened to kill Don King at the announcement of Spoon-Smith II.

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Lewis had originally hoped to meet Tyson, who became his mandatory challenger, during the summer of 2001, however, Tyson was issued a three-month suspension early in the year after testing positive for marijuana following his fight with golota. Lewis opted to make his next defense against little-known Hasim Rahman.......You know the rest of the story.

 

Luis Collazo.

 

My man Corrie Sanders

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I don't recall Corrie Sanders being a late replacement for anyone when he beat Klitschko. Klitschko signed to fight him as an easy defense of his belt. Wlad had just signed a big deal with HBO, and it was his way of making some easy money. Sort of like when Canelo signed with DAZN and his first fight was against Rocky Fielding, except Fielding didn't destroy Canelo in two. (LOL)

 

Wlad had tried to get a string of other guys signed for the fight. Sanders was not their first, second or even third choice iirc.

 

Right, but the thread is about late replacements. Wlad signed to fight Corrie Sanders. He wasn't scheduled to fight anyone else and Corrie stepped in at the last moment.

Davey Moore tried to get a fight with Tony Ayala. But Ayala was arrested and went to prison. So Moore fought Duran instead. But Moore-Ayala was never signed and Duran didn't step in with a week to go, or anything. Duran-Moore was the fight scheduled, just like Wlad-Sanders was the fight scheduled.

That's all I'm saying.

 

OK fair enough. Then I guess it doesn't count.

 

I think the true late replacement stepping in at the last moment and winning the title is rarer.

 

If Bert Cooper could have landed another few big shots v Holyfield in that third round, then a replacement for a replacement (originally Francesco Damiani replacing Tyson) would have turned the trick.

Big 'if' when the champion in question is Evander but so many of his fights were a case of 'ifs' and 'butts'.

 

Right. I think late replacements, more often than not, get destroyed. Like Caveman Lee was a late replacement when Hagler defended against him, and Lee lasted 'seconds.' (LOL) Not that Mickey Goodwin (the original opponent) would've lasted much longer.