The Biggest Upsets In Boxing History
Upsets in boxing make for some of the greatest stories in the history of the sport. There have been many underdog fighters who have defied the odds to shock the world to become world champions.
Here is our list of the biggest upsets in boxing history. Check out the stories of these shocking upsets below and how these underdog fighters became legends.
Buster Douglas vs. Mike Tyson
Of all of the biggest upsets in boxing history, arguably the greatest ever was Buster Douglas vs. Mike Tyson. In 1990 at the Tokyo Dome, heavyweight champ Mike Tyson defended his title against big underdog Buster Douglas.
Everyone counted Douglas out, but after the death of his mother, he promised her he would be champion. Tyson, on the other hand, took Douglas lightly and paid dearly for this mistake.
Buster had the performance of his career and shocked the world by knocking Mike out in the 10th round. Douglas was a whopping 42 to 1 underdog and if they fought today, you could’ve used MMA predictions tonight to win big.
Randy Turpin vs. Sugar Ray Robinson
On July 10th, 1951, Sugar Ray Robinson defended his world title against Englishman Randy Turpin. Robinson was on a historical 90 fight unbeaten streak and nobody thought Turpin would win.
The English boxer proved everyone wrong with one of the biggest upsets in boxing history. Turpin came on strong in the later rounds of the fight as Robinson got tired.
Randy earned a unanimous decision win and snapped the legend’s 90-fight win streak.
Leon Spinks vs. Muhammad Ali
The legend Muhammad Ali was getting towards the end of his fighting career in the late 1970s. He began showing his age, but nobody thought he’d lose to a young fighter named Leon Spinks.
Leon only had seven professional fights to his name when he stepped in with the champion. He was able to shock the world by pulling off one of the biggest upsets in boxing history.
Spinks went to war with the boxing legend Ali for over fifteen rounds. The young fighter pulled away towards the end of the bout and took the title from the GOAT of boxing.
Max Schmeling vs. Joe Louis
During the 1930s and 1940s, the legendary Joe Louis was one of America’s greatest sports heroes. In 1936, Louis was in his prime knocking out everyone in front of him.
Nobody thought that German boxer Max Schmeling had a chance against the champion. However, Schmelling had Louis scouted and delivered one of the biggest upsets in boxing history.
Max shocked the world by battering Louis and giving the champion his first professional loss.
James J. Braddock vs. Max Baer
The Cinderella Man, James J. Braddock wraps up our list of the biggest upsets in boxing history. Braddock was an every man, who originally quit boxing during the Great Depression to work for his family.
He made a huge return to the sport and earned a title fight against the intimidating Max Baer. This was supposed to be a statement win for the Baer, but Braddock had other plans.
Braddock controlled the fight and earned a decision to become a world champion.
