The Best / Memorable Fights of 1982

Rafael Limon v Rolando Navarette is worth a mention too, Flo.

 

Will add my thoughts on this landmark year in a bit.

 

It’s incredible that 1981 had already set the bar so high that 1982 could then surpass it, but it did. Think about the best fights from 1981: Sugar Ray Leonard-Thomas Hearns, Cornelius Boza-Edwards-Rafael Limon, Aaron Pryor-Dujuan Johnson, Sean O’Grady-Hilmer Kenty - that’s an impressive list by any standards.

Then you look at 1982: Sanchez-Nelson, Pryor-Arguello 1, Gomez-Pintor, Chacon-Limon 4 - as fine a list of fights in a single year as any in boxing’s history. You also had a heavyweight mega-fight in Holmes-Cooney to rival the spectacle of the Leonard-Hearns showdown from the previous year.

Four of the ten best fights I’ve ever seen were from 1982 so picking just one out of the lot is brutal, but to my mind Pryor-Arguello 1 remains the best fight I’ve seen… although anyone picking Chacon-Limon 4 (my own number 2 all-time) gets no argument from me. The crazy thing is Gomez-Pintor and Sanchez-Nelson would be FOTY in most other years and I only have them 3 and 4 respectively for 1982 but still in my all-time top 10.

Fight for fight, there’s never been another year quite like it.

 

I remember Boza-Edwards beating Elizondo and he battered him but didn't have the power for a ko.
I felt at the time that Elizondo may have suffered as a consequence and hoped he'd be ok.
There were some corking fights back then in the lower divisions and Hagler was 2 years into his reign in the 160lbs divisions.
Great days

 

The Morlocks, rest his soul, would have had a field day with this thread.

 

No division summed up the excitement of the era better than Junior Lightweight/Super Featherweight.

The fights for the WBC title in 1981 and 1982 were immense. After Arguello cleaned up that side of the division by 1980 and left for Lightweight, the WBC belt bounced from one fighter to another and each fight was a beauty.

In 1981, we had:
-Cornelius Boza-Edwards-Rafael Limon (FOTY contender)
-Cornelius Boza-Edwards-Bobby Chacon 1
-Rolando Navarette-Boza-Edwards

But somehow 1982 trumped it:
-Rolando Navarette-Chung Ill Choi
-Rafael Limon-Rolando Navarette
-Bobby Chacon-Rafael Limon 4 (The Ring’s FOTY)

And it carried on into 1983 with one more unforgettable fight:
Bobby Chacon-Boza-Edwards 2 (The Ring’s FOTY)

 

Hearns vs. Benitez was a chess match between two master boxers.

 

I was going to mention this one!

 

This is an underated fight and one that deserves more credit in my opinion.

 

Late 70's to 83 is my favorite era. Just incredible having those fights on every Sat and Sunday for that time span.
Out of the fights listed my order would be.
1 Chicon v Limon 4
2 Mancini v Kim
3 Fletcher v Jackson
4 Gomez v Pintor
5 Holmes v Cooney
6 Boza v Elizondo
7 Mancini v Frias
8 Navarette c Choi
9 Fletcher v Hard Rock
10 Hearns v Benitez
11 Sanchez v Nelson
12 Arguello v Pryor
13 Czyz v Sims

 

One of the most well read knowledgeable guys here.. I miss him too