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10 Best Welterweight Title Fights Since 1981
http://www.maxboxing.com/Groves/Groves091306.asp
It’s difficult to believe that Saturday will mark 25 years since Sugar Ray Leonard and Thomas "Hit Man" Hearns waged their unforgettable war for the undisputed welterweight title. Leonard-Hearns I occupies a special place in boxing history because it pitted two young champions who were either at or approaching their physical primes. They had defeated virtually every other contender of significance, so the timing, like the fight itself, was exquisite.
Both Leonard and Hearns were supremely talented fighters and each man’s style complimented the other. Leonard, the boxer, had already proved his one-punch KO capability by starching Dave "Boy" Green with a howitzer of a left hook while Hearns, the puncher, spent an extensive amateur career as a stick-and-move boxer. Those skills began to come into play in the sixth round, when Leonard immediately turned from hunted to hunter and the "Hit Man" turned into the "Hurt Man." But after absorbing a battering in the sixth and seventh rounds, Hearns unveiled his gifted boxing skills and dominated rounds eight through 12, gaining a deserved lead on the scorecards before Leonard’s power turned the fight for the final time in the 13th and 14th rounds. Leonard may have won the battle – and the belts – but the defeat did not diminish Hearns and in subsequent years he would prove himself worthy of a lasting greatness.
Over the past quarter-century, the fight game has seen its share of tremendous 147-pound championship contests, and while none of them have approached the level of Leonard-Hearns I, they have carved out their own special place in the pantheon. Here is – in reverse order – one man’s opinion of the best welterweight title fights of the last 25 years:
10. Donald Curry KO 2 Milton McCrory – December 6, 1985, Las Vegas: Curry-McCrory was the first unification fight since Leonard-Hearns I, and like its predecessor the winner would be regarded as the best 147-pounder of his small slice of time. "The Cobra" was intensely businesslike as he ducked between the ropes while "The Iceman" was calm and relaxed. But Curry gave McCrory cause for concern as he nailed him with a jolting cross in the opening seconds and dominated the rest of the first round as his precise combinations sliced through the WBC champ’s defenses. McCrory came out boxing in round two, using his 73 ½-inch reach to keep Curry at bay. With 1:36 remaining in the round, Curry countered a McCrory jab by stepping in and delivering a picturesque hook to the jaw that left the Detroit native spread-eagled on the canvas near the ropes. McCrory stumbled when he attempted to rise at five but managed to regain his feet at six. On this night, however, Curry could not be stopped as he ran across the ring and planted a perfect right cross to the jaw that ended the fight in most emphatic fashion. Curry’s cold-blooded execution convinced the boxing world that Leonard’s logical successor had just been crowned and that greatness was his for the asking. Granted, this fight didn’t feature much two-way action, but Curry’s superior level of performance ensured that it would be remembered for years to come.
9. Milton McCrory D 12 Colin Jones I – March 19, 1983, Reno: This bout was for the WBC belt Leonard had to vacate due to his retina problems, and McCrory opened as a solid 4-1 favorite mostly because no one in America had seen the Welshman fight. The bettors appeared correct as McCrory outboxed Jones over the first six rounds, but Jones got in his share of licks as he bloodied McCrory’s nose. By the eighth Jones’ face was a crimson mask but he continued to apply heavy pressure to McCrory, who spent most of the late rounds in full retreat to protect his injured right hand. Jones’ dangerous hooks landed with more consistency in the ninth, and McCrory appeared exhausted as he sat in his corner before the last round, but "The Ice Man" sucked it up and flurried furiously throughout the final three minutes. As the draw decision was announced, McCrory reacted with shock and disappointment while Jones celebrated a moral victory by earning a tie in his opponent’s home country. With nothing resolved as far as filling the vacancy, they had to fight again.
8. Milton McCrory W 12 Colin Jones II – August 13, 1983, Las Vegas: This time, McCrory and Jones fought in the parking lot of the Dunes Hotel and conditions were more suitable for sand dunes than a championship fight. The thermometer registered 105 degrees in the shade and McCrory got off to an even hotter start as he decked Jones with a hook to the jaw in the waning seconds of the first round. Just as in the first fight, McCrory commanded the early rounds but this time his dominance was even more pronounced as he repeatedly blasted his healthy right hand off Jones’ head and body. But Jones absorbed the punishment with aplomb and patiently waited for his chance to strike. That chance came late in the seventh as Jones’ lethal hook sent McCrory reeling into the ropes. McCrory bounced back nicely in the eighth, but two hooks in the ninth and a heavy right in the 10th got Jones within striking distance of a decision win. But as in the first fight, McCrory put together a strong 12th, enabling him to at last fill the vacancy via split decision.
7. Oscar de la Hoya W 12 Ike Quartey – February 13, 1999, Las Vegas: The pre-fight buildup equated De La Hoya-Quartey to Leonard-Hearns I, and on some levels it applied, though as a whole it didn’t quite live up to its legendary predecessor. They were two young champions who possessed a diversity of skills, and in spots the back-and-forth rivaled that of their fistic ancestors. Like the 1981 "Superfight," the action didn’t pick up until round six when they split a pair of knockdowns, each occurring on an exchange of hooks. In the seventh, Quartey’s rights raised a mouse underneath "The Golden Boy’s" left eye (yet another parallel to Leonard-Hearns I), and Quartey continued to attack the eye in the eighth. Like Leonard before him, De La Hoya rallied in the late rounds as he nearly floored Quartey with a big hook in the 10th and drove him to the canvas with a second one moments into the final round. After Quartey regained his feet, De La Hoya emptied his guns in search of the spectacular KO but Quartey not only survived the assault, he managed to put together his own mini-rally. The split decision in De La Hoya’s favor has been a source of heated discussion over the years and probably will be as long as great welterweight title fights are discussed.
6. Simon Brown KO 10 Maurice Blocker – March 18, 1991, Las Vegas: WBC champion Blocker and IBF king Brown did not want this fight to happen due to their deep personal friendship. But the opportunity to unify two of the three major belts – and the large paycheck that accompanied it – was enough to persuade them to put their personal feelings aside for one night. The 6-1 Blocker outboxed the 5-9 Brown in the first two rounds but a ferocious hook rocked Blocker midway through the third. The two men traded crisp, heavy blows in the fourth and fifth rounds with Blocker throwing more while Brown’s carried far more steam. "The Thin Man’s" skillful boxing and quick-fisted combinations carried rounds six through nine to give him a narrow lead on all three scorecards. With time becoming an enemy, Brown bolted from his stool in the 10th and fought in a blind fury. A heavy right cross-left hook combo sent Blocker falling into the ropes and had it not been for referee Mills Lane’s quick action, Brown would have struck his fallen friend with another blow. Up at nine, Blocker unashamedly clinched for survival but a six-punch combination caused Blocker to stagger across the ring and prompted Lane to call a halt at the 2:10 mark. Racked with guilt at having to hurt his buddy, Brown fought his way past Lane, the doctors and his opponent’s cornermen to hug Blocker tightly and offer him encouragement and comfort. The fight may have been over, but it was clear the friendship would endure.
5. Aaron Davis KO 9 Mark Breland – July 8, 1990, Reno: Davis-Breland was chronicled in the "Closet Classics" series, and for good reason. This transplanted turf war between the two New Yorkers was ferociously intense and the challenger Davis began the fireworks by staggering the WBA champ with a shotgun jab that most probably broke Breland’s nose. Davis consolidated his advantage with a knockdown in the third, but Breland’s sharp jabs opened cuts and raised a nasty swelling under the challenger’s right eye. Breland’s face was also bloodied and badly marked and within an unusually short time the battle was transformed into a war of attrition. The ringside doctors repeatedly examined Davis’ eye, which had become a grotesque blood-filled bubble after Breland enjoyed his best round in the fifth. Both fighters seemed one punch away from a knockout loss throughout the contest, and it nearly happened for both of them in a wildly exciting eighth round. The beleaguered Breland surged in the ninth as he battered Davis with his signature rights, but the tide turned violently and irrevocably after Davis landed a looping overhand right that caught Breland coming in on the tip of his broken nose. Breland collapsed to the canvas and was unable to beat Mills Lane’s 10 count. At the time of the knockout, Davis led narrowly on two of the cards but Breland’s courage in defeat put to bed all doubts about his fortitude.
4. Felix Trinidad KO 4 Luis Ramon "Yory Boy" Campas – September 17, 1994, Las Vegas: At 56-0 with 50 knockouts, the 23-year-old Campas was one of the most feared non-champions in the sport. Comparisons to Mexican icon Julio Cesar Chavez flowed freely, and it was no coincidence that Trinidad-Campas was on the undercard of the rematch between Chavez and Meldrick Taylor. According to his handlers, Campas had to file suit to get the 21-year-old Trinidad into the ring and the respect for Campas was such that the bettors created a boxing rarity: an even-money fight. Trinidad was making the fourth defense of his IBF belt and this was, by far, his most dangerous assignment. Respectful of Campas’ powerful hook, Trinidad opened the bout on his toes and snapped crisp jabs and powerful hooks. The Mexican turned up the heat in round two as he closed the distance and banged his trademark hooks against Trinidad’s ribs. An extraordinarily short hook to the jaw decked Trinidad for a two-count but instead of running, Trindad stuck his head in the lion’s mouth and traded breathtaking power shots with Campas. A Campas combination stunned Trinidad early in the third, and "Tito" retaliated with a low blow that drew a warning. A few seconds later, Campas rocked Trinidad with a tremendous right uppercut and the Puerto Rican again went low, earning a point deduction from Richard Steele. Angered by the penalty, Trinidad went inside and proceeded to batter Campas with a series of blistering combinations to the head and body for the remainder of the round. Trinidad continued the explosive assault in the fourth, but Campas unflinchingly fielded Trinidad’s rockets while ripping hooks to the body. After a tremendous toe-to-toe exchange, Trinidad ended matters with a breathtaking 23-punch assault that ended with a frighteningly flush hook that threatened to break Campas’ neck. Steele immediately – and correctly – stopped the fight at the 2:41 mark, and Trinidad’s spectacular performance stamped him as a superstar for the 1990s.
3. Shane Mosley W 12 Oscar de la Hoya I – June 17, 2000, Los Angeles – Of all the fights on this list, Mosley-De La Hoya I was the closest boxing has come to duplicating the circumstances that surrounded the first Leonard-Hearns fight. Like Leonard, De La Hoya was a young, charismatic gold medalist and the biggest moneymaker among the lighter weights. While Mosley wasn’t tall or angular like Hearns, he was a boxer-puncher who wanted to use his opponent to break through into the elite class while creating his own star. He had already made his mark at lightweight as he racked up eight defenses in mostly spectacular fashion, and many questioned the wisdom of skipping over 140 to launch an assault against the world’s best welterweight. Though Mosley was an inch-and-a-half shorter, he possessed a one-inch reach advantage and entered the ring three pounds heavier, exploding the notion that the former lightweight was the smaller man.
Both men came out blazing in the first round, displaying otherwordly hand speed. Mosley won the first round after catching De La Hoya with several overhand rights while De La Hoya won the second with hooks to the body. De La Hoya continued his good work in the third as a right momentarily buckled Mosley’s legs, and a solid hook gave Oscar an edge in the fourth. De La Hoya’s activity earned him a slight edge entering the second half, and between the seventh and eighth rounds, Mosley complained about his back tightening up. But Mosley turned the fight in his favor in the ninth as he got the better of the high-speed toe-to-toe exchanges. In the 10th Mosley landed an incredible 65 percent of his blows and "Sugar Shane" fought like Sugar Ray in the 12th as he outlanded De La Hoya 45 to 18. His late-round surge enabled Mosley to win a second divisional title by split decision and put him on the road to future Hall of Fame enshrinement.
2. Luis Collazo W 12 Jose Antonio Rivera – April 2, 2005, Worchester, Mass. – It’s a shame that American TV audiences weren’t able to see this incredible war, which was on the undercard of Jean-Marc Mormeck-Wayne Braithwaite, because Rivera and Collazo put forth efforts worthy of making them stars. Rivera was making the first defense of the WBA belt he won by beating fellow contender Michael Trabant in Germany before a charged-up hometown crowd while the southpaw Collazo sought to play spoiler. After splitting the first two action-packed rounds, the pace picked up even more in the third as they swapped hard blows along the ropes. Rivera was the aggressor throughout and enjoyed the edge at close quarters while Collazo’s quicker hands and crisper combinations served him well at long range. The bout was intensely physical as they continually tested the other man’s will to win. A brilliant exchange along the ropes ended the sixth round and from then on, the level of performance soared higher and higher. The 12th round ranks as one of the most sensational ever seen in a welterweight title fight as they punished one another with nonstop blows. In the end, Collazo captured the split decision because he was a little quicker, a little sharper and landed enough hard shots down the stretch to counteract Rivera’s determined pursuit. As a result of this fight, both Collazo and Rivera received opportunities to fight live on bigger stages, Rivera on Showtime and Collazo on pay-per-view and HBO. Given everything they’ve given to this sport, and especially in this fight, that is something both men richly deserve.
1. Simon Brown KO 14 Tyrone Trice I – April 23, 1988, Berck-Sur-Mer, France – This bout for the vacant IBF belt was one of the final 15-round title fights and they needed every second to determine the identity of the better fighter. By the middle of the first round, the two boxer-punchers were trading withering power shots and in the second, Trice scored first blood by decking Brown with a monstrous hook and an overhand right to the ear. Brown, whose stock and trade was strength sapping hooks to the body, turned boxer in rounds three through five, but that didn’t stop Trice from unloading dozens of his best blows.
The momentum turned sharply in round six as Brown whacked away at the ribs of the tiring Trice and in the seventh Brown wobbled Trice with a huge right uppercut. With weakened legs, Trice was forced to trade shot for shot in the eighth, but instead of folding Trice actually gained his second wind. The ninth produced spectacular trench warfare, but Brown’s superior strength came to the fore in the 10th when he put Trice in deep trouble with a series of combinations. Brown’s fury got the best of him when he lost a point for hitting after the bell, but that only seemed to fire up Trice, who won the 11th with skillful boxing. A strong right-left hurt Brown in the 12th, but "Mantequilla" exacted revenge by scoring three knockdowns in the final 45 seconds of the round. Because the three-knockdown rule didn’t apply in IBF title fights, the bout was allowed to continue, and Trice survived the 13th by running away and clamping down on the overanxious Brown. In the 14th, a revitalized Trice stunned Brown with a big right to the jaw but the Jamaican responded with a short inside right to the jaw that left Trice face-first on the canvas. While falling, Trice’s head hit Brown’s and inflicted a serious cut over the Jamaican’s left eye. Struggling to his feet by five, Trice managed to remain upright only by the force of will. But even Trice had his limits of endurance as Brown connected with a sickening hook that snapped Trice’s head violently, forcing referee Steve Smoger to call a merciful halt at 2:29 of round 14.
As this list shows, the welterweight division hasn’t fared badly in the quarter-century since "The Superfight," but it would have been unfair to expect subsequent fights to reach the rarefied air it occupies. The odds are that sometime in the future, a welterweight title fight will be so good that it will take its place among the very best boxing has ever seen. When that day comes, it’ll be immediately obvious, for that’s how it happened with Leonard-Hearns I. As soon as referee Davey Pearl waved the fight over at 1:45 of the 14th round, its place in history had already been secured.
Until we see another fight like that, I’m sure boxing fans will be more than content to see bouts worthy of breaking into this list. True greatness, after all, won’t be rushed
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Originally Posted by ICE COLD BOXING
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