Who should belong in the Hall of Fame?

LMAOOOO @ David Tua deserving the Hall of Fame.

There's literally hundreds of guys more deserving. Literally hundreds.

 

I like Johnson but to me he was to inconsistent for serious consideration. He has solid wins over Jones and Tarver but adding another world title or some title defenses would have bolstered his chances. If Michalczewski can't get in with all of his title defenses then no way should Johnson make it.

 

I cannot fathom a reason why he would ever even be considered.

 

There are a number of promoters, matchmakers, managers and trainers who should be inducted in the International Boxing Hall of Fame, including Larry Foley, Jack Hurley and Frank Churchill. Foley developed a number of the early Australian boxers, a number of whom had a great impact during the early days of boxing under the Marquis of Queensbury Rules. Hurley was one of the most highly regarded boxing men during what is regarded as the "Golden Age of Boxing." Churchill probably was the most important figure in the early days of boxing in the Philippines.

- Chuck Johnston

 

A maybe to McCellean, who in my opinion at age 35 beat a prime James Toney in fight that was called a draw.

I don't think being a fan is enough, you have to do something else. Roosevelt once offered Jim Jeffries a ring fight, Jeffries politely declined the sparing. Could you imagine that one?

No way on Tua.

No on Forrest, you could argue if he did a little more he would have earned the HOF. Winning the re-match vs Mayorga? That might be enough. Sadly he went young in his prime with plenty left to give. Talent he had.

 

I was thinking of the same thread, ' Who Deserves to be in the IBHOF, in that a lot of fighters have been overlooked, and deserve to be recognize.

 

It's the Hall of FAME, not the Hall of Accomplishments....Arturo Gatti is in there despite his punching bag status for the majority of his career....

As per your list:

As great a fighter as as Viper Forrest was, I'd be a bit hesitant to send him to HOF. He was never a huge a draw, and while his double wins over a prime Mosely was certainly a great achievement, there wasn't much to follow it up with . Back to back losses to the unheralded Ricardo Mayorga pretty much cancel out the 2 Mosely wins. Without many exciting, life or death battles on his record, a long title reign, or even a flamboyant personality, I don't know that there's much to hang his hat on legacy wise. Thats not to say I don't think Forrest couldn't have beaten many of the great fighters of his day, or had a superior style....it's just that those fights never materialized.

Now as for Tua, I would strongly consider him for HOF, but not for any of the reasons you mentioned. I could honestly care less that he is of Somoan decent, and I don't think we should send fighters to HOF simply for their race or nationality, that's just stupid.......BUT, Tua has the right blend of being highly entertaining and being a top contender during a particularly stacked HW era. The fact that he never won a title diminishes nothing for me as HOF consideration, and probably only enhances his mystique and reputation as an avoided fighter

Consider that during the late 90s Tua faced off against undefeated Chris Byrd, undefeated Hasim Rahman, and undefeated Ike Ibeabuchi who were all young studs at that time and basically the top available contenders. All those fights were highly competitive and entertaining, with both Byrd and Rahman going on to win HW Championships within a couple of years.

Consider also some of his lesser wins, highly brutal KOs over John Ruiz and Oleg Maskeav, two more guys who also went on to become HW title holders

Tua does take a hit for his loss to Lewis, only because it was a dull fight in which he was dominated and never really seemed to go all out for the win, but a loss to Lewis isn't still not much to be ashamed about, and it's not like Tua was embarrassed by a humiliating KO or anything

I also think it's a bit unique that Tua only ever got one shot at the title during an era when guys got plenty of opportunities, and also considering how many wins he racked over guys who later went on to win the title

 

Lionel Rose
Ernesto Marcel
Gilberto Roman
Sumbu Kalambay
Santos Laciar
Miguel Lora
Marlon Starling

 

Shocked that Ceferino Garcia is still not in the IBHOF yet.

 

If you really do wanna see how good he was, you should watch him vs Gomez, Shibata and Arguello. Then watch Antonio Gomez vs Saijo, Shibata vs Saldivar, and Arguello vs Olivares. That way, you'll have seen the caliber of fighter that Marcel was dominating. Unbelievable fighter.

 

What?

 

Ummmm are you thinking of Mike McCallum? The same McCallum that's already in the HOF?

 

More guys that should be included to the IBHOF:

Yuri Arbachakov
Jiro Watanabe
Wilfredo Vazquez Sr
Chucho Castillo
Sot Chitalada