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The 14 Biggest Upsets in Boxing History

By YPB Team

Bookmakers got every one of these wrong. Some ended a reign, one ended an aura.

  1. Buster Douglas beats Mike Tyson — ranked #11
    Buster Douglas beats Mike Tyson
    A 42-1 underdog knocked out the undefeated heavyweight champion in Tokyo in February 1990.
  2. Cassius Clay beats Sonny Liston — ranked #22
    Cassius Clay beats Sonny Liston
    The 22-year-old challenger took the heavyweight title from Liston in Miami Beach in February 1964 as an 8-1 outsider.
  3. Hasim Rahman beats Lennox Lewis — ranked #33
    Hasim Rahman beats Lennox Lewis
    Rahman knocked out the undisputed champion in the fifth round in South Africa in 2001.
  4. Muhammad Ali beats George Foreman — ranked #44
    Muhammad Ali beats George Foreman
    Ali, a 4-1 underdog at 32, stopped the unbeaten Foreman in Kinshasa in 1974.
  5. Lloyd Honeyghan beats Don Curry — ranked #55
    Lloyd Honeyghan beats Don Curry
    The British welterweight travelled to Atlantic City in 1986 and stopped the pound-for-pound number one.
  6. Randolph Turpin beats Sugar Ray Robinson — ranked #66
    Randolph Turpin beats Sugar Ray Robinson
    Turpin outpointed Robinson over 15 rounds in London in 1951 to take the middleweight title.
  7. Evander Holyfield beats Mike Tyson — ranked #77
    Evander Holyfield beats Mike Tyson
    Holyfield, a 25-1 underdog, stopped Tyson in the eleventh round in Las Vegas in 1996.
  8. Andy Ruiz Jr. beats Anthony Joshua — ranked #88
    Andy Ruiz Jr. beats Anthony Joshua
    A late replacement dropped Joshua four times at Madison Square Garden in 2019.
  9. Leon Spinks beats Muhammad Ali — ranked #99
    Leon Spinks beats Muhammad Ali
    Spinks, in only his eighth professional fight, took the title from Ali on a split decision in 1978.
  10. James J. Braddock beats Max Baer — ranked #1010
    James J. Braddock beats Max Baer
    The Cinderella Man came off the relief rolls to outpoint Baer for the heavyweight title in 1935.
  11. Tyson Fury beats Wladimir Klitschko — ranked #1111
    Tyson Fury beats Wladimir Klitschko
    Fury outboxed the long-reigning champion in Dusseldorf in 2015 to end a nine-year title run.
  12. Bernard Hopkins beats Felix Trinidad — ranked #1212
    Bernard Hopkins beats Felix Trinidad
    Hopkins, the underdog, stopped the unbeaten Trinidad at Madison Square Garden in 2001.
  13. Jorge Castro beats John David Jackson — ranked #1313
    Jorge Castro beats John David Jackson
    Castro was being outboxed and badly hurt before knocking Jackson out in the ninth round in 1994.
  14. Corrie Sanders beats Wladimir Klitschko — ranked #1414
    Corrie Sanders beats Wladimir Klitschko
    The South African southpaw dropped Klitschko four times and won inside two rounds in 2003.

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Comments

Leon Spinks was in his eighth professional fight when he won a title, and Buster Douglas was priced at 42-to-1. Four entries, two men: https://youpick.best/articles/muhammad-ali-vs-mike-tyson-ranked https://youpick.best/articles/muhammad-ali-ranked-many-ways

YP
ypb-team·Aug 21·
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