Bigger Upset: Leon Spinks vs. Muhammad Ali or Michael Spinks vs. Larry Holmes?

[Piggu]

When Leon upset Muhammad Ali to win the Heavyweight Crown,
"Neon Leon" only had 8 fights under his belt. But the Ali he beat was badly faded and far past his prime.

When Michael fought Larry Holmes, Holmes had a record of 48-0 and was 2 fights away from surpassing Rocky Marciano's record 49 straight wins. Michael was the undisputed Light-Heavyweight Champion at the time and was jumping to Heavyweight to fight for the Championship. In a

[K-DOGG]

You really have to go with Leon...he only had 8 fights at the time he beat Muhammad, where Michael had already established himself in a pretty darn good Light-Heavyweight division.

[joeytrimble]

i gotta go with the dogg house on this one....same thing ..gots to go with neon

[Yogi]

Michael was a 6-1 underdog against Holmes, whereas Leon was such a overwhelming underdog that only one betting outlet anywhere (as you would think, it was in Las Vegas...they had it at 8-1) even bothered to put up the first Ali/Spinks fight.

[psychopath]

No doubt it's Leon beating ALI. 8 Fights in the division and you become the heavy Champion? Not to mention that Ali is a much more recognized name than Holmes.

[Yogi]

You really have to go with Leon...he only had 8 fights at the time he beat Muhammad, where Michael had already established himself in a pretty darn good Light-Heavyweight division.

Hey K-Dogg, remember that short discussion we had in regards to the odds for Bowe/Holyfield I?

"The odds are close, favoring Holyfield by only a narrow 7-5." - Nov 11th, 1992 edition of the Washington Post

"A late flurry of betting on Holyfield pushed the odds up to 7-to-5" - Nov 14th, 1992 edition of the Dallas Morning News

[K-DOGG]

Hey K-Dogg, remember that short discussion we had in regards to the odds for Bowe/Holyfield I?

"The odds are close, favoring Holyfield by only a narrow 7-5." - Nov 11th, 1992 edition of the Washington Post

"A late flurry of betting on Holyfield pushed the odds up to 7-to-5" - Nov 14th, 1992 edition of the Dallas Morning News

Well, I'll be damned.

Thanks Yogi....now I won't be wrong on "that one" again. That really surprises me, to be honest because I remember the majority of the "experts" going with Bowe.

[Yogi]

That really surprises me, to be honest because I remember the majority of the "experts" going with Bowe.

That's quite possible, my friend, as I "think" I can also remember the same thing being said in the boxing magazines and whatnot from the time. Actually, I can quite clearly remember my own thinking in regards to my favouring Bowe in that fight, but then again, I certainly wouldn't classify myself as an "expert"...especially when it comes to this fight predicting stuff.

[K-DOGG]

That's quite possible, my friend, as I "think" I can also remember the same thing being said in the boxing magazines and whatnot from the time. Actually, I can quite clearly remember my own thinking in regards to my favouring Bowe in that fight, but then again, I certainly wouldn't classify myself as an "expert"...especially when it comes to this fight predicting stuff.

What I remember "specifically" was the pre-fight special on HBO where Larry Merchant, George Foreman, and Gil Clancey gave their takes. Larry clearly went with Holyfield, Clancey went with Bowe, and George Him-hawed around the issue, giving both a chance to win depending upon how they fought.