Is Duran v Leonard I the best win in boxing history?

Im really referring to your comments regarding the 2nd fight because anyone who has seen that would not say overall that SRL made Duran look like nothing because a lot of rounds were pretty close, in fact SRL was only ahead by a couple of points when Duran quit. SRL was moving a lot and taunting frustrating Duran in that sense, but his punch output was fairly quiet until around the 7th and he wasnt even landing that much on Roberto.

You may have watched the last 2 rounds on youtube and gotten that idea but watch the whole fight..and if you really have then watch it again.

The first fight was close but clear. I have never heard a legitimate arguement for SRL winning that fight..Even SRL thinks so.

 

Ali over Foreman. Ali became the "Greatest" when he beat Foreman. Duran did not achieve the same level of stardom when he beat SRL. Infact it was the apex of his career. It was basically down hill from there. He would lose 50% of his fights from there on out. While Ali was certainly past his prime, but still had success.

A great win no doubt, he beat a great fighter that night. But it wasnt Rumble in the Jungle kind of win ya dig?

 

Exactamundo!thumbsupthumbsup:thumbsup

 

I personally dont like the arguement if a fighter is more well known, then he should be ranked higher or lauded with more praise after his career is over if thats what your are getting at Danny_Rand.

That being said I really dont have a problem with people considering Foreman-Ali a better win, its just they are least pretty close.

A lot of people want to rank guys using their star appeal as important factor but I reckon thats a very unfair way of doing it.

 

I also like Douglas v Tyson ..... the main factor being that Buster did it for his momma !

 

If I had to pick 2 fights, I'd pick Duran over Leonard and Ali over Foreman. But the Rumble in the Jungle ranks higher. Duran beating Leonard who was America's golden boy at the time 2 weight classes above where he made his career was a great feat. But it was basically his swan song. I dont know if anyone gave Ali a chance against Foreman though.

 

I think Holyfield Tyson 1 is better than the Douglas upset. I like it more than Duran/Leonard 1 also. Holyfield was almost as big a dog as Douglas when the lines opened at 40-1 (or was it 20-1? - either way). Holyfield was seen as being in BIG decline with some mediocre wins and a HEART PROBLEM that he had to doctor shop in order to be cleared to fight at all! Throw in the fact that Tyson was the most intimidating fighter of all time here. Remember Holyfield's expression when they touched gloves? Not even he could completely overcome the intensity of the moment, but you could tell there was something different about his heart from guys like Bruce Seldon who were *scared* onto the canvas vs. Tyson without even taking a punch. You could just feel in that moment that Holyfield was gonna be serious. Then he Al CapOWNED Tyson.

Then in the rematch, he literally beat the former "most feared man" into the LOONY BIN. This is the greatest ownage of one human being over another - even greater than Tarver over Roy, which is tough to beat. :hat

 

You just contradicted yourself. First you stated that Size/weight is a side issue

then you bolded the point where he fought two classes above. Which one is it? Is it an issue or not?

Lets assume its not. Since Duran was fighting at WW for years prior to this fight and was successful at that.

This was a very close fight and SRL made a tactical error in this fight as been documented. Duran fought very well but never had Leonard in any serious trouble. Had Duran either dominted or outclassed SRL or had Duran went on to defeat SRL in a rematch, defeat Benitez, Hearns or any combo..This fight would have been given much more creedence. The fact of the matter is, besides beating Cuevas..This was Durans last win against any elite fighters.

 

It may be I'm trying to rack my brain for a better win and can't think of one. Like you said Tyson/Douglas is the biggest upset, not the biggest win. I like Ali/Foreman as well.

 

This is my basis as to why it is the greatest win.

If I were to make a list of the 5 BEST fighters I've seen, both Duran and Leonard would be on it, alongside Robinson, and perhaps names like Charles, Whitaker, Ali, Jones, etc would finish out the top 5.

Who beat Duran at his absolute best? Robinson? Charles? Ali? Whitaker and Jones were never truly beaten at their best either. Leonard was, by Duran. Foreman was a great fighter, but Leonard was a level above. A win over him in his prime is far more impressive IMO than a win over Foreman. Frazier's win over Ali is closer to Duran-Leonard than Ali-Foreman IMO.

It was close, but a win for Leonard would have been a robbery, and SRL fought more or less his typical fight. Throughout his career, he wasn't the kind of fighter who showed up in the rematch, he fought Duran in basically the same way he fought Hearns, Benitez, and the vast majority of opponents he met. The problem was, Duran was simply better at closing the distance than just about anyone in the history of boxing, and forced Leonard to fight his fight.

 

Biggest win

Schemeling over Louis
Ali over Foreman
Ali over Liston
Douglas over Tyson for the sheer shock of it.
Frazier over Ali 1
Pryor over Arguello
Hagler over Hearns

I can name a ton with two great fighters and its significance

 

So you are saying these are all more significant than Duran over Leonard chimba?

 

Duran's win was definitely sweet, I gotta give the edge to Ali over Foreman, Dempsey over Willard, and Robinson over Lamotta (Feb 14, 1951). I also think that the Holmes Norton fight was one of the greatest fights of all time, but not really the best win.