Best losing efforts you've ever seen

Fenech-Nelson 1 was a draw, so how can it be one of the best losing efforts?

 

Mancini-Arguello, and Watt-Arguello. An awful lot of terrific opponents did not do as well against Alexis as Ray and Jim managed. Only Arturo Leon and Watt managed to go the championship distance against Arguello. Watt made about as classy an exit from boxing as a champion can produce in a losing effort, one I think compares favorably with how Ross ended his career against Armstrong. Mancini proved he was more than just media hype in lasting longer against Alexis than any of the other challengers Arguello stopped in title defenses.

Chacon's first match against Boza Edwards was a gallant effort, and his boxing obituaries were published immediately after, the sporting press feeling it was a fine way to go out. Schoolboy landed the harder punches, including one elbow flipping right which made Corny do the chicken dance, but Bobby ran out of gas. This one should be on youtube so younger fans can fully appreciate what a ridiculously improbable career reversal Chacon made to become a champion again. There was simply no way Bobby ever should have been able to come back from Boza Edwards I.

Ramirez-Rosario I deserves mention. Rosario looked awesome in annihilating Ed Viruet, and was being touted as another Gomez or Duran. This match for the Arguello's vacated WBC LW Title was supposed to be his formal coronation in San Juan. But Ramirez, last seen before a nationally televised audience getting shut out by Mancini nearly two years earlier, came on strong as the rounds passed by, but ran out of time due to the WBC's abolition of the championship distance. Nonetheless, Ramirez proved that Chapo was no Duran or Gomez, and this set the stage for his dethroning of Rosario (shockingly getting off the floor twice to stop Edwin) a year and a half later.

Ramirez-Arguello can also be mentioned. Jose decked Alexis in the process, originally making a name for himself in dropping a startling SD loss. Jose forged a hell of a career on the backs of those defeats to Arguello and Rosario. I think he'd have been a far more suitable entry into Canastota than Rosario, if either was going to be inducted. In 111 bouts, Ramirez was only stopped by Olivares when he was just 19.

 

Robberies aside, here's some:

Tommy Hearns vs. Ray Leonard I
Meldrick Taylor vs. Julio Cesar Chavez I
Ernesto Marcel vs. Roberto Duran
Howard Winstone vs. Vicente Saldivar II
Betulio Gonzalez vs. Masao Ohba
Chatchai Sasakul vs. Yuri Arbachakov
Marlon Starling vs. Donald Curry II
Buddy McGirt vs. Pernell Whitaker I
Yama Bahama vs. Emile Griffth
Jose Stable vs. Emile Griffith
Ismael Laguna vs. Ken Buchanan I & II
Paolo Rosi vs. Carlos Ortiz
Eddie Davis vs. Michael Spinks
Tim Witherspoon vs. Larry Holmes
Eder Jofre vs. Fighting Harada II
Edwin Rosario vs. Hector Camacho
Rocky Lockridge vs. Eusebio Pedroza (both times)
Bernardo Caraballo vs. Fighting Harada
Sumbu Kalambay vs. Mike McCallum II
Reggie Johnson vs. James Toney
Farid Salim vs. Joey Archer
Gil Turner vs. Kid Gavilan
Gil Turner vs. Joey Giardello
Azumah Nelson vs. Salvador Sanchez
Rocky Rivero vs. Joey Giardello I
Juan Laporte vs. Julio Cesar Chavez
Ruben Navarro vs. Ken Buchanan
Jim Watt vs. Ken Buchanan
Billy Graham vs. Kid Gavilan III
Alberto Jimenez vs. Mark Johnson
Harold Brazier vs. Meldrick Taylor
Mario Alberto DeMarco vs. Myung Woo Yuh
Juan Laporte vs. Salvador Sanchez
Patrick Ford vs. Salvador Sanchez
Kid Chocolate vs. Tony Canzoneri

 

Benitez vs Leonard

 

Really good picks :good

 

A Very faded John Conteh Almost beating Saad Muhammed in 1st Encounter.

Paul Hoko Hodkinson Battering Ironman Marcus Villasana and way in front, until his eye went (Hoko got it right in the rematch )

Pat Cowdell giving Salvador Sanchez a close tussell on the scorecards - that bad last round went against him.

(Not seen, but would dearly love to, Kevin Finnegan giving Marvin Hagler hell, and apperently level on the Scorecards, with Finnegan closing Strong, when pulled out with bad cuts, strangely only a month later they did again with the same result but Kevin not competitive on the scorecards this time, but still tough.)

Harold Shadow Knight lost a barnburner to Rocky Lockridge, Rocky' experiance just carring the day, but eye trouble ment great prospect Harold had to retire

Guy Villagas waged abolute war with Cornelius Boza-Edwards, Threating to blast Boza out of the Ring, but Boza soaked it up and nailed a tiring Guy in the second half,

 

Imn suprised that Meldrick Taylor V Chavez and Hearns V Leonard hasnt already come up

Castillo V Mayweather (first fight)
Mickey Ward V Arturo Gatti

 

Razor Ruddock V Mike Tyson
Alan Rudkin V Harada and Lionel Rose
Castillo v Olivares

 

Watt vs Arguello was a tame surrender imo.

Fair enough he was slowing down physically, but it's not as if he didn't have the style to frustrate Alexis and give a better effort than he did.

Jim didn't look like he even thought he could win at any point.

The Buchanan fight...now that was Watt's finest hour.

A few others....Chung-il Choi vs Navarette, Navarette vs Limon, Efren Torres vs Accavallo, Winstone vs Saldivar 1,Murata vs Chandler\Pintor,Yaqui Lopez in all of his title challenges, McGwan vs Chionoi and the big tall Thai fighter against Canto

 

Agreed about Watt.

 

Karl Mildenberger - Muhammad Ali deserves a mention. The bout was stopped in the 12th but Mildenberger had given Ali one of his toughest challenges up to that time. He gained a lot of respect for his game showing.

 

Jose Luis Castillo: Corrales-Castillo I

Arturo Gatti: Manfredy-Gatti.

Gerald McClellan: Benn-McClellan

Alex Stewart: Holyfield, Moorer and Foreman fights.

Bert Cooper: Mercer-Cooper

 

:goodto that, i'd add holyfield-cooper

 

Out of some fairly recent ones:

Maidana against Khan
Morales against Maidana
Froch against Kessler
Matthysse against Judah

 

Good call!