Top 10 All time heavyweight contenders

Who were the 10 best heavyweights who never won the heavyweight championship? In previous decades, before there were as many as 4 "legit" titles and other minor "world" titles, there were a lot of quality heavies who never made it all the way to the top. Who are the best and most accomplished of those fighters who didn't have a variety of "titles" to fight for?

 

It would take some time to come up with a list. Surely Jerry Quarry would have to be on there. Probably at least a few others from the 70's.

From the 90's i would add Razor Ruddock.

 

I don't think Ruddock ever did enough to get the uncrowned champion reputation he had. He had trouble with old Bonecrusher Smith, he blasted out past prime Dokes and got beaten up twice by Tyson and that was pretty much it. He never proved being as good as supposed.

If we compare them to their timers, I think guys like Jim Johnson, Joe Jeannette, Harry Wills etc should be high

 

Renaldo Snipes

 

I know he didn't actually accomplish much in his brief career, but imo Ike Ibeabuchi is #1 on this list. Quarry, obviously.

Anyone think Oscar Bonavena deserves mention?

Does this list include guys like Harry Wills and maybe Sam Langford? Guys who were barred from title shots in the early 1900s?

 

ibeabuchi and tua

 

Ah, sorry i misread the original post.

I was thinking of him as being sort of like in Quarry's situation. Rather than the Ali, Frazier and Foremans, Ruddock fought when Tyson, Lewis and Holyfield were around.

As far as the thread topic goes Ruddock doesn't qualify.

 

I don't think Ruddock qualifies in any case. Quarry was fighting (and beating) other contenders on a regular basis. Ruddock, not so much. He gets a lot of mileage from some for giving Tyson a halfway decent fight, but he really didn't do much else of note in his career except get splattered by Lewis.

 

Oh really now?

Well guess what, you're wrong.

So there.

 

You forgot to call me a simpleton.

 

You are forgetting the Canada-factor. It took me a while to understand why whiskey has George Chuvalo ranked 3rd among all-time heavyweights too

 

Jimmy Young might have been the best, on his day at least.

 

That's a lie. :nono:



I have him 4th.

 

::

 

no way

 

Quarry for sure is up there
it can be argued that Ken Norton never "won" the title, so he would be a shoe-in for such a list if one gets into semantics
I think this is a shorter list than many people would think at first... when you get into the nitty gritty, and consider the proliferation of "titles" over the last 30 years especially, you start to run out of really high quality fighters that failed to hold a belt at some point

if you really think about it, guys like Ruddock, Mercer, Ron Lyle all would have realistic shots at being part of a list like this

 

Mercer held a legitimate title. He shouldn't be included, IMO.

Tua, Ibeabuchi, Bonavena, Quarry, Wills, Danny Williams, Jeanette, Calvin Brock and maybe Shavers.

 

Really good picks by all here today.

I will add: Cleveland Williams, Zora Folley, and Eddie Machen.

Karl

 

Jerry Quarry was a tough guy with a ton of heart, but he would not even be a champion today, the real champ that is.He wouldn't have beaten The Klitschkos but he beat the shit out of that fat slob Arreola. He had the correct skin to get the hype. He is very overrated as a fighter.

 

Kirk Johnson...


REED:mj:

 

blows, what was this thread about?

 

He'd BEAT Chris Arreola RIGHT NOW...


REED:hammert:

 

::::

 

Well, maybe not now but in his prime Kirk Johnson would have murdered literally the fat Mexican Pig.

Johnson was a way better fighter than he turned out to be and I attribute that to his Canadianess. Had he grown up a street kid in the states with some toughness, he may have been a champion. He just wasn't mean enough to be an elite fighter. He was extremely talented though. His kayo of Maskaev was awesome.

 

I never bought it.

In regards to the thread, I'd say Joe Mesi

 

Bought what? The guy who fought Vitali was not the guy who fought Oleg. Mesi would kayo the fat Mexican Pig today though for sure.

 

:atu: where do u come up with this balderdash ?

 

He Recently Opened a Balderdashery....


REED:hammert:

 

I dont think you can guage it that way

I mean, Wladimir Klitschko would kill Jack johnson, but hes not "greater" than him

Quarry was a leading contender during the most competetive heavyweight era there ever was... he belongs on this list and he beat some damned good fighters

 

agREED. And I don't see how Ike thinks Quarry is overrated. He was a good fighter who couldn't beat the very best of his time, but he was among the best of the rest and he proved it by fighting most of the top 10 of his time. I've never seen anyone who matters call Quarry a great fighter. But he was a top contender in a very deep division and he would be the same (and possibly more than that) in most other heavyweight eras.

Hey...remember that "IrishLad" guy from Secondsout who was a huge Quarry fan (and of any other Irish fighter)? He often came to the defense of any Irish fighters in the same foaming at the mouth way that Jaws does for Tyson.