Most embarassin' couple of losses for the british heavyweight titans: McCall/Rahman or Ruiz/Dubois?

Two questions to ask.

1. What were the fighters who accomplished the upset going into the fight?
2. What woudl they have amount to, if the fight hadn't happened?

If you are sitting comfortably I will begin.

Oliver McCall was ranked in the top ten going into the fight, and he woudl be relevant in the division more than a decade later. He was not worthy to lace up Lewis's gloves, but he was clearly a very strong contender.

Hassim Rahman was also ranked going into the fight, and he would later go on to win the WBC title after Lewis had retired. That makes him a two time champion, and a very strong contender of the era.

Andy Ruiz was ranked outside the top ten going into the fight, and was brought in as a last minute replacement. This is by far the most damaging loss of teh four. Even so it must be mentioned that he later beat Luis Ortiz, proving that he was a top contender without beating Joshua.

Daniel Dubois is still a work in progress, and this is the only upset on the list that I called, for whatever it is worth. He was clearly a top contender going into the fight, and Joshua was clearly on the way down. In that respect it isn't all that damaging. What is perhaps damaging, is how emphatically Dubois beat him.

I voter Ruiz/Dubois, solely on how damaging the Ruiz loss is.

 

Joshua vs Ruiz/Dubois because Joshua got beat up badly in both fights where as Lewis got caught with single shots and most people considered it a fluke or a freak moment.

 

As @Dynamicpuncher states...

Joshua was getting outdone in all departments by perceived underdogs.

Lewis paid the price for single, flash moments.


Also, Lewis improved markedly after McCall and his punch perfect return against Rahman will remain a classic for all time.

Joshua outmaneuvering a 283lb Ruiz Jr over 12 rounds was about as mundane as it gets and, if anything, AJ has since regressed.

 

Ruiz and Dubois were expected to be competitive, even though Joshua was favored. The answer is Lewis, but it’s because he was the better fighter. Lewis also would’ve been murdered on social media if it were a thing back then.

 

Ruiz was 33/1 to win on points and 18/1 to win by KO so I'm not sure where you are getting that from. Ruiz was not ranked in the top 10 and was a late replacement for Miller.

McCall was a 5/1 underdog and Rahman was a 20/1 underdog so less than Ruiz and Dubois overall.

 

Ruiz and Rahman were by far bigger underdogs than McCall or Dubois. I would vote for the Ruiz loss as the most embarrassing mostly due to how shocking it was seeing someone with that physique batter a guy built like AJ. I still go back and watch it frequently.

 

Odds don’t always tell the story. Ruiz had already gone even with a guy who was top 5 in the division and improved after, but the average boxing fan had no clue.

 

Lewis proved himself over a longer period of time those losses were flukes imo.
Both avenged in dominant fashion.
For me AJ suffers the worse.