what was the greatest upset in boxing history?

[Mintcar923]

Tyson-Douglas for sure..

When I looked in my boxing mag back in '90 and it said Buster Douglas KO10 Mike Tyson it looked like a misprint! I'm getting the book about it called "The Last Great Fight," for my birthday next week and I can't wait...

Honarable mentions off the top of my head are Duran-Barkely, Liston-Clay 1, Ali-Spinks 1, Lewis-Rahman, and Tyson-Holyfield 1...

[joseph5620]

how was the Ali-Liston rematch an upset if Ali won the first fight?

I think I remember reading that Liston was a 9-5 or 13-10 favorite for the rematch. Maybe someone with more knowledge of this can confirm whether or not that's accurate.

[Bigdaddy_Vh]

Turpin over Robinson is my pick. Not sure of the official odds, but that's a bigger shocker than Douglas over Tyson to me.

I like this pick a lot but it doesn't come anywhere near Tyson Douglas in terms of odds or shock value. Ray was just slightly past his prime when he lost to Turpin. Iron mike was in his absolute prime

[crold1]

I did forget that one, which is odd since I bet on Rahman at 10-1. You don't think Braddock-Baer was a bigger upset?

Maybe, but Baer had a reputation even then for inconsistency. Lewis getting leveled probably makes it bigger in my mind, but in terms of attention and shock to the masses, the elder fight is probably bigger. And the week of Lewis-Rock I, there were a lot of insiders whispering upset and the press was picking up on a difference in readiness. No one really saw Baer coming.

[Scott9945]

Maybe, but Baer had a reputation even then for inconsistency. Lewis getting leveled probably makes it bigger in my mind, but in terms of attention and shock to the masses, the elder fight is probably bigger. And the week of Lewis-Rock I, there were a lot of insiders whispering upset and the press was picking up on a difference in readiness. No one really saw Baer coming.

When I saw Lennox in the crowd at an HBO fight a couple of weeks before the Rahman fight, he looked bloated and puffy. That's what triggered the upset special to me. Plus he waited until the last minute to arrive in South Africa, which probably isn't ideal for adapting to a different altitude and time zone.

[Anthony342]

I say Tyson-Douglas also, but wasn't Leonard's win over Hagler considered an upset? I remember hearing at the time people picking Marvin to get an early stoppage on Ray. What were the odds on that fight?

[Panamaniac]

how was the Ali-Liston rematch an upset if Ali won the first fight?

Liston was such a fearsome figure that most people figured the first fight to be a fluke and that Sonny would avenge his loss. I don't have the betting odds, but if memory serves me right, Liston was favored to win the rematch, albeit at thinner odds. To this day, there are people who don't believe Sonny actually got hit in the rematch and that he took a dive. These people probably believe the earth is flat, but I digress...

The mere fact that someone wins a first fight, does not automatically make him favored to win the rematch. I don't think Spinks was favored to beat Ali or Douglas to beat Tyson in their respective rematches.

Of course, I could be wrong...

[Scott9945]

I say Tyson-Douglas also, but wasn't Leonard's win over Hagler considered an upset? I remember hearing at the time people picking Marvin to get an early stoppage on Ray. What were the odds on that fight?

Hagler was about a 3-1 or 4-1 favorite. A major upset, but not one of the all time biggest.

[SBleeder]

I like this pick a lot but it doesn't come anywhere near Tyson Douglas in terms of odds or shock value. Ray was just slightly past his prime when he lost to Turpin. Iron mike was in his absolute prime

Yes, but in hindsight, Robinson is generally called the GOAT... Turpin was a tough son of a gun, but never came anywhere near Robinson's level again. This fight has to be up there with Tyson-Douglas.

[dan_cov]

Tyson vs Douglas.
Turpin beating Sugar Ray?

From recent memory Grachev beating Ismayl Sillakh, he was a 12-1 underdog.