Fighters that lost and almost lost big money fights by taking a tune up fight

Joe Baksi took a stupid fight against Olle Tandberg in Sweden and lost his title fight against Joe Louis.

 

Can anyone compete with AJ here? Losing to Ruiz probably cost him 9 figures.

 

Ali's loss to Norton cost him a title rematch w/ Frazier iirc.

Gus Lesnevich's rematch defense vs. Freddie Mills cost him a title shot @ Joe Louis.

 

This was when Fury and Wilder froze him out, so where the hell he would get these 9 figures from?

 

Wilder when he lost to Parker. The AJ fight was signed for March 2024. All he had to do was win. But to be fair, he lost a lot of money declining the offer to fight AJ in 2019 anyway.

 

There was a lot of talk about Price vs Fury in the years leading up to Fury making the rankings to get to Wlad. Price absolutely capitulated in the two Thompson fights which was terrible matchmaking but they evidently thought he was more than equipped for that kind of test and he never recovered mentally. The second fight he put up some resistance but ended up wobbling around the ring as if he was made of rubber. I think he was always the classic glass cannon if you put it on him or tired him out by five rounds.

 

I figure a fight with Fury would have materialized.

 

It would have anyway in 2021 if Wilder didn't win the arbitration. The contracts were signed.

 

Heavyweight Alex Garcia had a big money offer to fight Foreman IIRC. He fought Mike Dixon instead for far less money and was KO'd in 2. His career tanked after that.

 

Wasn't the Foreman's offer before that ?
I believe it was for Bowe (whom he already declined a fight with several months before).

 

Dan McAlinden V Pat Duncan before a proposed Bugner fight.

 

Actually, that's correct. Looks like Garcia's management passed on a shot at Foreman. Foreman lost to Morrison on 6/7/93, and Garcin lost by KO2 to Dixon on 6/8/93. Garcia had previously turned down $1.1 million to fight Bowe in February '93. Instead, AG takes the Dixon fight a few months later for $15k, and gets blasted out early.

 

Roberto Duràn was tuning up vs Kirkland Laing so he can get his payday vs prospect Tony Ayala Jr,you know how it ended..

 

Tim Witherspoon was about to fight Mike Tyson in a WBC/WBA title unification in 1987. Then he lost to James Smith who got the opportunity instead.