Longest a title challenger has been stoned walled (post Color Line)?

I’m not sure enough to answer this question properly but I’ll try. “Big” James Toney was shamelessly avoided by the Klits for 5 years. 2003-2008 he was in the top 5 HWs according to the RING. neither brother gave him a chance, I understand why and so do other educated scholars.

 

Zora Folley entered the heavyweight top 10 in 1956 and stayed there. Yet, did not receive his long-awaited title shot until 1967.

 

Really, that's disgusting. Hats off to him fighting through it.

 

How long has Terrance Crawford been at 147? He still hasn't gotten Spence to sign on tye dotted line

 

Patterson’s reign was dark for the eligible contenders who didn’t receive their due chance - and even as outstanding a challenger as Liston was - he was also put on the back burner, invoking every excuse possible as to why he didn’t deserve a shot.

Had he not been beaten by Ali, I like to think and do believe that Liston as Champ would’ve rematched Folley and Machen, subject to their eligibility.

Putting aside potential deteriorations on Liston’s part, based on prior experience and learning, I think he would’ve done even better in a rematch v Machen, certainly not worse - and he’d do better particularly if Machen stepped it up for the brass ring and tried to win rather than just survive - leaving himself more open and vulnerable.

 

Shameful really.

 

Dumb question but when did the color line officially end?

 

Not a dumb question in my opinion. I don’t think there’s a clear answer… or at least there is more than one answer.

In terms of the heavyweight division, Joe Louis’s title reign meant an end to black fighters being banned from challenging for the title. So you could argue the colour line ceased to exist from the 1930s for the marquee division in the sport. And if there was no colour line for the most coveted prize in sports, then was there really a colour line anymore in boxing?

However, fighters were still denied title shots in the 1940s on account of their race. We know that the man considered by most as the greatest light heavyweight ever, Ezzard Charles, didn’t receive a title shot until he moved up to heavyweight and the second greatest, Archie Moore, had to wait till the early 50s to get his opportunity.

In America, you’d have to say that it was a gradual thing and that things started to change in the other weight divisions in the 50s and 60s, which coincides with the wider Civil Right movement and de-segregation. By the 1970s, I don’t think anyone would be referring to the colour line, although that doesn’t mean that deserving challengers all got their title opportunities, but that was boxing politics rather than racial discrimination.

So my answer would be the 1950s.

 

Which, when you think about, is absolutely crazy.
And if some people had, had their way, the colour bar would have lasted a lot longer.

 

Sorry mate I completely disagree with this. Whyte didn't beat any true top 20 fighters til 2018, he was rated number 1 before that and there's a big difference between being rated number 1 and being mandatory there's countless fighters who get messed around this way.

Whyte was offered a shot against Joshua in 2019 but turned it down over money so Ruiz took the fight instead, I'm sure the purse was still about $5-6 US million.

He didn't win the Interim belt until July 2019, which he failed a drugs test for and Eddie Hearn pulled a few strings to get that brushed under the carpet with the B-Sample etc but the dianabol didn't get in his system by mistake they don't put that in preworkouts.

Since then there has been the massive government over reaction and lockdown which has stalled nearly every fighters career and during this time he was knocked clean out by a 40 year old Povetkin.

Does he deserve his shot now yes absolutely but he's already turned one down, failed a steroid test and been knocked out in the last 1000 days.

 

Did Hagler ever turn down a title shot, despite never being a champion because multi millions weren't enough. Did Hagler ever fail a steroid test. Did Hagler ever get knocked out while waiting for a shot? Did Hagler ever refuse to do an interviews because $8 million US wasn't enough for his first shot?

There's no comparison I hope you're not trying to bring the you know what card into this either because that's played no part at all in delaying Whyte getting a title shot.

 

This is an attempt at making out promoters are keeping Whyte down if Whyte wasn't an A side fighter with money behind him he would have been banned for 3-4 years for his second failed drugs test.