What was the biggest fight in the history of boxing?

Was supposed to be Pac vs May, Manny was chasing a faster runner

 

Financially or historically?

 

Define "biggest"

 

Biggest to me is defining a time and history and/or people watching. So it has to be Louis vs Schmelling or Ali vs Frazier 1

 

Manute Bol vs. William "The Refrigerator" Perry. May 22, 2002.

 

The biggest fight in history of boxing is trying to get the Fury vs Usyk fight to happen.

 

Ali Foreman for sure

 

Very interesting thread. Some on here were bashing me recently for favoring Ray Leonard over Ray Robinson.

I noticed no Ray Robinson fights even made your cut. That's not a knock on Robinsons skill, just that it gives you pause that the consensus greatest fighter ever didn't even make a list of greatest fights ever, on a boxing forum that unanimously rates him so highly.

I thought your list was pretty decent, I'd probably get rid of Thrills in Manila and replace it with something else. May be Leonard vs Hearns, which I'd certainly list before Leonard vs Hagler. Same goes for Leonard vs Duran.

I might also make room for De la Hoya vs Trinidad, ot Tyson v Holyfield 1, probably over Gene Tunney or Tommy Burns

 

For all-round fame and legendary status, has to be the Rumble, no other comes close.

Honourable mentions for Fight of the Century; Louis-Schmeling II; and Tyson-Holyfield II [though only 'big' for the wrong reasons].

I sort of feel that something by the Fabulous Four ought to be on the list, but in truth their legendary clashes were spread over multiple fights, with no one single epoch defining encounter.

 

On a historical perspective i voted for Burns vs Johnson, first coloured fighter to be the heavyweight champion, that was a massive barrier broken, ok 'lil arthur' did upset the white folks enough to prevent another coloured champ for 22 years.

 

Ali Foreman.

 

I think ali vs foreman grew into it cause of the upset. Had foreman made him look like Norton then it would just be forgoten as Ali being past it post comeback innthe 70's.

For example, had Tyson ko'd lewis then it would have grown into this foreman vs Ali legacy where as now it is forgotten.

It didnt have the same pre fight importance as fotc and louis vs Schmelling 2 I think.