Looking back through history at rematches, the results are pretty bleak. I am looking forward to the Usyk-Fury rematch but rematches rarely live up to the first fight. Since their first fight was a great fight, it's doubtful that the rematch will be but I am hopeful. Any way, I can think of several series where the rematch did not live up to the first fight. Leonard-Hearns- the rematch was good but the first fight was great. Leonard-Duran- the first fight was a classic and the rematch was not much and only memorable for the controversy, Gonzalez-Carbajal- first fight was epic, the rematch was a snoozefest, Ali-Frazier- first and third fights great, rematch sucked, Holyfield-Bowe- first fight classic and third fight good but rematch eh, Marciano-Walcott- first fight a classic war and the rematch a blow-out. I can think of few exceptions. I could see a case for Canelo-GGG as the rematch may have been better than the first and way better than the third. What do you think? Can you think of rematches that were better?
Fury-Wilder III was the best one. Usually the rematch has the superior boxer doing more boxing, but I think in terms of pure boxing Fury and Usyk are evenly matched. It could be an ATG fight.
Wright/Mosley 2 was better than Wright/Mosley 1. I mean it was still pretty lopsided but Shane tried harder which made it better.
There's been many instances where the rematch was superior to the first fight. Off the top of my head: Matthew Saad Muhammad vs Yaqui Lopez 2 Bobby Chacon vs Cornelius Boza Edwards 2 Edwin Rosario vs Jose Luis Ramirez 2 Daniel Zaragoza vs Paul Banke 2 Lennox Lewis vs Evander Holyfield 2 Rafael Marquez vs Israel Vazquez 2 Manny Pacquiao vs Juan Manuel Marquez 2 Canelo vs GGG 2 This year we had some great rematches and those fights exceeded their previous fights. Sivenathi vs Adrien Curiel 2 Josh Taylor vs Jack Catterall 2 Nathan Heaney vs Brad Pauls 2
I didn't think Usyk-Fury 1 was a great action fight. It was certainly meaningful, no doubt. But I have yet to go back and rewatch the whole fight a single time. Just the knockdown, really. I mean, I thought the first Wardley-Clarke fight was very exciting, and I thought the rematch, while completely different, was also wildly exciting. I hope the Usyk-Fury rematch is more exciting overall. Their styles didn't particularly mesh well the first time out from an action perspective. It's one of those fights where, if they hadn't signed a two-fight deal, nobody would exactly be clamoring to watch it again right away. We'll watch it, but ... it isn't a matchup anyone wants to see three or four times.
Great fights and Leonard-Hearns 2 was a good fight but their first was a classic. Both good but the first was much better imo.
Of the heavyweights of late: Whyte v Chisora 2 (evenly fought, and Chisora unnecessarily went for broke due to a spurious points deduction leading to a great KO) Wilder v Fury 2 (ATG performance by Fury deserves inclusion, though was it "better" than fight 1? Probably not) Wilder v Fury 3 (extremely motivated Wilder and an extremely unmotivated Fury in perfect balance, but again was it better than fight 1? Again probably not) Usyk v Joshua 2 (Usyk going through the gears in the championship rounds after Joshua got a foothold in the fight was pretty special, though the first fight was fought at a high level too) Probably only Whyte v Chisora 2, but even that seemed an extension of fight 1.