Compiling a list of the 50 greatest heavyweight fights

Jel · Feb 19, 2021

Impressed with the responses so far.

Perhaps rather foolishly, I decided to track every fight mentioned so far in the thread and put them in rough (by year but not exact date) chronological order - partly to make my job of coming up with a definite top 50 easier but also because.... I'm a nerd.

I'll post the full list in the original post of the thread. It's 173 fights and counting (if I've managed to catch them all).

William Walker · Feb 19, 2021

Jel said: ↑

Impressed with the responses so far.

Perhaps rather foolishly, I decided to track every fight mentioned so far in the thread and put them in rough (by year but not exact date) chronological order - partly to make my job of coming up with a definite top 50 easier but also because.... I'm a nerd.

I'll post the full list in the original post of the thread. It's 173 fights and counting (if I've managed to catch them all).
Click to expand...

Ambitious but silly Jel. No, not really. At only 5 pages so far, as long as you keep with it, it shouldn't be too hard!

George Crowcroft · Feb 19, 2021

Jel said: ↑

Impressed with the responses so far.

Perhaps rather foolishly, I decided to track every fight mentioned so far in the thread and put them in rough (by year but not exact date) chronological order - partly to make my job of coming up with a definite top 50 easier but also because.... I'm a nerd.

I'll post the full list in the original post of the thread. It's 173 fights and counting (if I've managed to catch them all).
Click to expand...

How many did I add to that lol

Jel · Feb 19, 2021

George Crowcroft said: ↑

How many did I add to that lol
Click to expand...

Too many

Jel · Feb 19, 2021

William Walker said: ↑

I know this list doesn't scratch the surface. For the late 90s and early 2000s in particular I knew that there were a lot of fights that needed to be on there, but as I have said, I have not watched that era exhaustively, but it won't stay that way forever. Here we go:

Dempsey vs. Firpo I
Dempsey vs. Tunney II
Sharkey vs. Maloney IV
Schmeling vs. Walker
Baer vs. Carnera
Braddock vs. Baer
Louis vs. Baer
Schmeling vs. Louis I
Louis vs. Braddock
Nova vs. Baer I & II
Louis vs. Galento
Baer vs. Galento
Louis vs. Baer I
Louis vs. Conn I
Louis vs. Walcott I & II
Walcott vs. Charles II & III
Henry vs. Satterfield
Layne vs. Satterfield
Marciano vs. Walcott I
Moore vs. Valdes I
Marciano vs. LaStarza II
Charles vs. Satterfield
Marciano vs. Charles I & II
Marciano vs. Moore
Satterfield vs. Valdes
Patterson vs. Jackson I
Liston vs. Williams I & II
Liston vs. Machen
Patterson vs. Johansson II & III
Machen vs. Jones
Jones vs. Foster
Jones vs. Folley II
Ali vs. Jones
Daniels vs. Jones II
Chuvalo vs. Jones
Ali vs. Liston I
Terrell vs. Foster
Patterson vs. Chuvalo
Terrell vs. Chuvalo
Bonavena vs. Chuvalo
Frazier vs. Bonavena I & II
Frazier vs. Machen
Spencer vs. Terrell
Patterson vs. Quarry I & II
Frazier vs. Chuvalo
Ellis vs. Bonavena
Quarry vs. Spencer
Frazier vs. Ramos
Frazier vs. Quarry I & II
Mathis vs. Chuvalo
Chuvalo vs. Quarry
Martin vs. Liston
Frazier vs. Ellis I
Quarry vs. Foster
Ali vs. Bonavena
Frazier vs. Ali I, II, & III
Ellis vs. Chuvalo
Patterson vs. Bonavena
Ali vs. Norton II & III
Shavers vs. Ellis
Quarry vs. Lyle
Frazier vs. Bugner
Quarry vs. Alexander
Ali vs. Foreman
Norton vs. Quarry
Lyle vs. Shavers
Foreman vs. Lyle
Shavers vs. Williams
Young vs. Foreman
Ali vs. Shavers
Norton vs. Young
Holmes vs. Shavers I & II
Spinks vs. Ali I
Holmes vs. Norton
Holmes vs. Weaver I
Norton vs. Cobb
Cooney vs. Young
Spinks vs. Lopez
Mercado vs. Shavers
Weaver vs. Tate
Weaver vs. Coetzee
Holmes vs. Berbick
Dokes vs. Gardner
Shavers vs. Sims
Holmes vs. Cooney
Snipes vs. Berbick
Page vs. Tillis
Dokes vs. Weaver II
Coetzee vs. Thomas
Coetzee vs. Dokes
Frazier vs. Broad
Holmes vs. Witherspoon
Bruno vs. Cummings
Witherspoon vs. Page I
Page vs. Coetzee
Williams vs. Ferguson
Holmes vs. Williams
Rodrigues vs. Oetelaar I
Thomas vs. Weaver
Berbick vs. Thomas
Weaver vs. Williams
Tyson vs. Gross
Page vs. Wills I & II
Biggs vs. Snipes
Ruddock vs. Smith
Holyfield vs. Dokes
Tyson vs. Bruno I
Holyfield vs. Stewart I
Snipes vs. Washington
Bowe vs. Biggs
Douglas vs. Tyson
Mercer vs. Cooper
McCall vs. Seldon
Mercer vs. Morrison
Moorer vs. Stewart
Tyson vs. Ruddock I & II
Holyfield vs. Foreman
Holyfield vs. Cooper
Bowe vs. Coetzer
Bower vs. Holyfield I, II, & III
Holmes vs. Mercer
Morrison vs. Williams
Moorer vs. Cooper
Foreman vs. Stewart
Lewis vs. Bruno
Foreman vs. Moorer
Morrison vs. Ruddock
Williams vs. Davis
Lewis vs. Mercer
Bowe vs. Golota I & II
Mercer vs. Witherspoon
Holyfield vs. Tyson I & II
Tua vs. Izon
Holyfield vs. Moorer II
Abeabuchi vs. Tua
Abeabuchi vs. Byrd
Lewis vs. Briggs
Stewart vs. Sellers
Tua vs. Rahman I & II
Grant vs. Golota
Jefferson vs. Harris
Golota vs. Norris
Etienne vs. Bay
Rahman vs. Sanders
Lewis vs. Klitschko
Tua vs. Barrett I & II
Click to expand...

William Walker said: ↑

Here you go @Jel.
Click to expand...

Thanks @William Walker! I'll add the ones I was missing to the original post in this thread.

Jester · Feb 20, 2021

Most of the obvious ones have been named, so I will mention Lou Nova-Max Baer II, an overlooked slugfest between two big punchers.

Jel · Feb 20, 2021

Jel said: ↑

Thanks @William Walker! I'll add the ones I was missing to the original post in this thread.
Click to expand...

I can't do it - too tired - your list after @George Crowcroft's broke me.

Dynamicpuncher · Jan 24, 2022

Carl Williams vs Jesse Ferguson 1985
Renaldo Snipes vs Lionel Washington 1988
Razor Ruddock vs Bonecrusher Smith 1989
Mike Tyson vs Razor Ruddock 2 i thought 2nd fight was better than the 1st 1991
Tyrell Biggs vs David Bey 1987
Courage Tshabalala vs Darroll Wilson 1997
Darroll Wilson vs David Izon 1998
David Izon vs Derrick Jefferson 2000
Earnie Shavers vs Jeff Sims 1981
Artur Szpilka vs Mike Mollo 1 and 2 2013
Joe Mesi vs Vassiliy Jirov 2004
Amir Mansour vs Steve Cunningham 2014

Tried to mention some that aren't on the list, if i misread the list and repeated some fights i apologize.

ikrasevic · Jan 24, 2022

Jel said: ↑

Give me some picks that you personally think are essential but avoiding the obvious - the rarer the better. I'm looking to populate 21-50 more than 1-20.
[ ] Tyson Fury v John McDermott 1 (2009)

Click to expand...

Wladimir Klitschko v Ruslan Chagaev 2009

OP_TheJawBreaker · Jan 24, 2022

Tyrell Biggs vs Jeff Sims

Unforgiven · Jan 25, 2022

McGrain said: ↑

I think that this task is harder with heavyweights than any other weight. What I mean by that is fights like Lewis-Rahman II or Louis-Schmeling II seem reasonable inclusions - but they are terrible fights with overmatched opponents getting seriously hurt.
Click to expand...

Overmatched?
They'd already beaten the other guy previously.

OP_TheJawBreaker · Apr 21, 2022

Earnie Shavers vs Muhammad Ali
Earnie Shavers vs Tex Cobb
Earnie Shavers vs Roy Tiger Williams
Earnie Shavers vs Jeff Sims
Earnie Shavers vs Bernardo Mercado
Earnie Shavers vs Ron Lyle
Earnie Shavers vs Larry Holmes 2

Bob Satterfield vs Rex Layne
Bob Saterfield vs Elkins Brothers
Bob Satterfield vs Ezzard Charles
Bob Satterfield vs Clarence Henry
Bob Satterfield vs Bob Baker

David Izon vs Lou Savarese
David Izon vs David Tua
David Izon vs Darrol Wilson
David Izon vs Michael Grant
David Izon vs Terrence Lewis
David Izon vs Derrick Jefferson

Lennox Lewis vs Gary Mason
Lennox Lewis vs Ray Mercer
Lennox Lewis vs Vitali Klitschko
Lennox Lewis vs Shannon Briggs
Lennox Lewis vs Frank Bruno
Lennox Lewis vs Tony Tucker

Tommy Morrison vs Joe Hipp
Tommy Morrison vs Ray Mercer
Tommy Morrison vs Carl Williams
Tommy Morrison vs Razor Ruddock
Tommy Morrison vs Ross Purrity

Lamon Brewster vs Kali Meehan
Lamon Brewster vs Clifford Etienne
Lamon Brewster vs Siarhei Liakhovich
Lamon Brewster vs Luan Kransniqi
Lamon Brewster vs Wladimir Klitschko 1

Renaldo Snipes vs Trevor Berbick
Renaldo Snipes vs Floyd Cummings
Renaldo Snipes vs Tyrell Biggs
Renaldo Snipes vs Larry Holmes
Renaldo Snipes vs Lionel Washington
Renaldo Snipes vs Johnny DuPlooy
Renaldo Snipes vs Gerrie Coetzee

Enjoy Guys!

louis54 · Apr 21, 2022

Sure miss the morlocks

Gazelle Punch · Apr 21, 2022

Max Baer v Max Schmeling
Max Baer V Primo Carnera (this one a must!) both entertaining scraps

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Compiling a list of the 50 greatest heavyweight fights

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Compiling a list of the 50 greatest heavyweight fights

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