Best performance of a fighter that still lost the fight?

Funny enough Andrew Golota vs John Ruiz, and that was for the WBA belt. I thought he got robbed in that one.

 

Ali in the 1st fight with Frazier ,,,Ali dished out enough punishment to stop a truck and still took a beat down.

 

Taylor against Chavez. Had Taylor not had his win stolen by richard Steal the don king house ref,that performance by Taylor would have been seen as one of the best in light welterweight history

 

Billy Conn v Louis in 1941
Walcott v Louis 1947
Walcott v Rocky 1952
Sharkey v Dempsey 1927

 

If you can replace the word "lost", with "didn't win", then Walker vs Sharkey would be the obvious one.

 

Dare I say …… Francis Ngannou vs Tyson Fury?

 

Jerry Quarry in the first Frazier fight - I never saw Jerry in better fighting shape and he gave as good as he got, but he was up against a machine that night. Jerry would have been a handful for anyone that night.

John Tate against Weaver - John boxed brilliantly for 14 1/2 rounds, completely dominating a fighter that gave Larry Holmes hell, before getting nailed with that one desperation shot.

Ruben Olivares (at featherweight) against Alexis Arguello - I can't emphasize enough the job the 5'5" Ruben was doing to the soon to be all-time great, 5'10" Arguello. Figuratively speaking, he was kicking the crap out of him, ahead on points, but just walked into a left hook in the 13th, which done him in.

 

In Jin Chi vs Erik Morales
Ike Quartey vs ODLH
Mike Weaver vs Larry Holmes
Tim Witherspoon vs Larry Holmes
Ray Mercer vs Lennox Lewis
Dave Boy Green vs Carlos Palomino
John Mugabi vs Marvin Hagler

 

Not saying it was necessarily his best, but I’ll submit Ray Robinsons great performance against Joey Maxim until Ray surrendered due to the extraordinary heat.

A few others: -

Frazier vs Ali III
Norton vs Holmes
Nelson vs Sanchez
Plus Foreman vs Briggs but it’s strongly arguable that Foreman did in fact win, so perhaps not eligible

 

Lupe Pintor in his challenge against Wilfredo Gomez.

Arguello in his challenge against Aaron Pryor.

Alfredo Escalera in both his fights against Arguello.

Yaqui Lopez in his challenge against Matthew Saad Muhammad.

Kennedy McKinney against Marco Antonio Barrera.

Those are my favourite losing performances where I felt really invested in the guy who lost because they showed so much.

 

Frankie Randall v. Chavez II
Rocky Lockridge v. Gomez

Two rippoffs

 

Arguello-Pryor was a hearbreaker; Alexis was the epitome of a classy champion - his consolation to Ray Mancini after their bout was sportsmanship at its best. He gave everything he had against Pryor that night and just got battered - and the suspicions that Aaron might have had some "assistance" in his "water bottle" only made the outcome worse.

 

Wlad v Joshua

 

Vitaly Vs. Byrd
Vitaly Vs. Lewis
Golota Vs. Bowe 1 and 2
Roy Jones Jr. Vs. Montell Griffin