what were the most anticipated fights of the 80's

[Sugar Adam Ali]

By only using the biggest most mainstream attention fights that were huge to the casual fans and media

Duran-leonard 1,2
Leonard-hearns 1. Maybe 2
Hagler-hearns
Holmes-spinks 1,2
Leonard-hagler
Tyson-spinks


Those were the only true "event" type fights

[Sugar Adam Ali]

Before my time but and not sure how much hype there was leading into it, but how big was ali coming back vs Holmes.. I would assume that would have been big

[Scott9945]

Before my time but and not sure how much hype there was leading into it, but how big was ali coming back vs Holmes.. I would assume that would have been big

It was a big fight for casual fans, but serious fans knew this would be a mismatch. Holmes had no real box office appeal so Ali's name carried the promotion. Of course beating a big name (even as far past it as Ali was) makes you a star, and that made Holmes-Cooney an even bigger event than this one imo.

[Anthony342]

Hagler-Leonard would have to be on that list somewhere.

Yeah and from watching some Hagler fights a while back, weren't Hagler and fans calling for this fight since about 1982? I remember seeing some HBO post fight interview with Leonard as one of the commentators where Hagler was already asking Leonard for a match.

[The Old LefHook]

Yeah and from watching some Hagler fights a while back, weren't Hagler and fans calling for this fight since about 1982? I remember seeing some HBO post fight interview with Leonard as one of the commentators where Hagler was already asking Leonard for a match.

Ideally, Haglar/Leonard would have happened a few years sooner. As it turned out, Leonard beat Haglar in a non fight. It seems doubtful he could have done that in 82.

[MisterHardtop]

People here have listed most of the relevant fights, ones that appealed to a wider, non-boxing audience but none of those fights were as important as the mini boxing boom which occurred in the late 80s, all thanks to one man. Iron Mike Tyson.

Say what you want about him now, say what you want about the celebrity of Leonard but no one, and I mean no one, since Ali has garnered as much international acclaim and recognition as Tyson. He made boxing must watch, all inclusive TV again, a handful of years after Ali had retired. Tyson was already a household name in the US before winning his first belt but by 1989, he was THE international sporting icon. Everyone of his fights were events and seemed to be record breakers in all sorts of revenue records.

So my answer to the thread, anything Tyson related for a period of about 3 years.

[Anthony342]

Ideally, Haglar/Leonard would have happened a few years sooner. As it turned out, Leonard beat Haglar in a non fight. It seems doubtful he could have done that in 82.

Yep, which is why Leonard waited until 1987 to make the fight happen.

[Anthony342]

McCallum-Curry. At least boxing fans and myself looked forward to that one.

[LacedUp]

Hagler-Leonard
Hearns-Hagler
Leonard-Duran 1&2
Tyson-Spinks
Holmes-Cooney
Leonard-Hearns I
All of Tyson's fights 86-onwards

I can't see many other fights rivaling these in all honesty.

[The Old LefHook]

McCallum-Curry. At least boxing fans and myself looked forward to that one.

We had great plans for Curry, didn't we, until Honeygan so rudely interrupted our fantasies?