The Premier Fights That Could have Happened But Didnt?

[Ivich]

The fights throughout history that for one reason or another did not happen. Which ones would be the most historically important for boxing and the participants? Matches where men did actually meet at some point are NOT allowed
I'll kick off with
Dempsey v Wills
Sullivan v Godfrey
Lewis v Bowe
Conteh v Galindez
Robinson v Burley
McGuigan v Nelson
Sanchez v Pedroza
Jeffries v McVey
Lewis v Wlad
Liston V Johansson
Marciano v Valdes
Leonard v Pryor
Armstrong v Burley
Willard v Wills
Olson v Giardello
Sullivan v Jackson

[Hustle]

Morales vs Marquez
De la hoya vs Winky
Trinidad vs Mosley
Toney vs Hopkins
Calzaghe vs Froch
Lewis vs Bowe
Joshua vs Wilder

[ShoulderRoll]

Juan Manuel Lopez vs Yuriorkis Gamboa (Bob Arum said it had to marinate)
Floyd Mayweather vs Manny Pacquiao in 2009-2010 (Bob Arum said Pacquiao was afraid of needles despite having numerous tattoos)

[Ivich]

Juan Manuel Lopez vs Yuriorkis Gamboa (Bob Arum said it had to marinate)
Floyd Mayweather vs Manny Pacquiao in 2009-2010 (Bob Arum said Pacquiao was afraid of needles despite having numerous tattoos)

"Matches where men did actually meet at some point are NOT allowed."

Floyd and Manny did meet.

[QueensburyRules]

Morales vs Marquez
De la hoya vs Winky
Trinidad vs Mosley
Toney vs Hopkins
Calzaghe vs Froch
Lewis vs Bowe
Joshua vs Wilder

- - Never relevant in the same weight class when Active.

[Nash out]

Kovalev vs Stevenson was a huge fight at one point. Bowe vs Lewis, but Bowe didn't want that smoke. Tyson vs Foreman. Ward vs Golovkin. Mayweather vs Golovkin. Marquez vs Morales. Ken Norton vs Christian Hammer. Khan vs Mayweather. Broner vs Ricky Burns. Breazeale vs Washington. Joshua vs Wilder (Wilder brought the money to the table, Joshua and Eddie ran into hiding) McGregor vs Malignaggi. Stone Cold Steve Austin vs Hulk Hogan. Rocky Balboa vs John McClane. Haye vs Briggs. RJJ vs Eubank/Benn/Collins. Nash out.

[The Old LefHook]

We don't have enough room!

[Anthony342]

"Matches where men did actually meet at some point are NOT allowed."

Floyd and Manny did meet.

Yeah but they met later than when fans really wanted it to happen. So I think it still counts. Anyway, how about Roy Jones vs. Dariusz Michalczewski? I believe the problem with making that fight happen was venue. Jones didn't want to fight in Germany after he got screwed over so badly in the Seoul Olympics against the hometown fighter Park Si-Hun so he thought no way I'm getting screwed over by home cooking again, he can come to the US and Darius didn't wanna do that for whatever reason, so not really Jones' fault there.

[GhostofDempsey]

Yeah but they met later than when fans really wanted it to happen. So I think it still counts. Anyway, how about Roy Jones vs. Dariusz Michalczewski? I believe the problem with making that fight happen was venue. Jones didn't want to fight in Germany after he got screwed over so badly in the Seoul Olympics against the hometown fighter Park Si-Hun so he thought no way I'm getting screwed over by home cooking again, he can come to the US and Darius didn't wanna do that for whatever reason, so not really Jones' fault there.

Fans “really wanted it” for years leading up to 2015. Floyd admits he marinated the fight for five years to make it bigger.

[GhostofDempsey]

Floyd vs. Casamayor, Freitas, Wright, Martinez, Margarito, Vivian Harris, Tszyu, Paul Williams.

Norton vs Frazier

Tyson vs. Mercer

Tyson vs Bowe

Tyson vs Wlad K

Lewis vs Bowe

Jose Napoles vs Luis Rodriquez

Tunney vs Wills

Fullmer vs Benton

Roy Jones vs Michalczewski, Collins, Tiozzo

LaMotta vs Graziano

Robinson vs Burley, Holman Williams, Lloyd Marshall

Pacquiao vs Valero, Mikey Garcia

Holmes vs Foreman

Langford vs Greb