OT-Let's talk boxing

Although the result was not altogether unpredictable, last nights one sided debacle left a sour, unfinished, taste in my mouth.  I'm looking for top five, top five fights you have seen in your lifetime.  Of course, the sole basis for dicussion is not just what happenned within the ring at the moment of truth, pre-fight hype, press-conferences, personalities, and historical significant all enter into the equation here, so all formulas are acceptable. There are some parameters, if you saw the fight one year after live on Showtime, you can say that you witnessed it, but unless you were actually alive and not an infant at the time, you cannot include it.  Like me, though sure I saw Will Smith in a pretty good immitation of the "Rumble in the Jungle," it is not a fight that I have "witnessed" in good faith.  Just the one rule and regulation.  Happy Sunday night discussion.....

4.  Mike Tyson v. Lenix Lewis, Memphis 2002:  This did not live up to its billing, but I cannot remember a fight that I was this exciited to see.  From the pressers, to the ring walks, to the intros, absolute drama from go.  To see Tyson destroyed to the extent that he was after winning Round 1, I truly reaized that the greatest fighter than I and a lot of us had ever seen had given up, and lost it completely.  In other news, Lenix Lewis can fight afterall...

 4.  Mike Tyson v. Buster Douglas, Tokyo 1991: Some may not remember this, but Buster got saved by the bellhard, horecore, in the 9th.  Took a seriously combination, with a right handed uppercut finale late in that round, Mike was on the prowl only too be silenced by the bell.  This fact does not underscore what this fight was about, however.  Those watched that absolute f#%king shocker witnessed the dissolution of a legend, this Mike Tyson needed that hug from the ref when his mouthguard flew out, the ref was the only one left to hug.

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4. Margerito v. Cotto, Las Vegas 2008: Alright, Margerito was likely completely cheating, and that has to be taken into account when determining its legitimacy, but WOW was this a battle.  Cotto with combo after combo, and landing time after time.  Bam, Bam, Bam, Margerito walks right threw it, searches and destroys, I wanted Cotto to stay down on that knee, enough is enough.

3.  Castillo v. Corrales I, Las Vegas 2005:  The tenth round was the single most incredible 2 minutes of boxing that I have ever seen.  Corrales was the cadillac, and you knew it the entire time that you were watching, but Castillo was in it for the long hual.  That was one of the mist resilant fighters I have ever seen, he almost had Corrales laid out a few times.  But wowe Diego, that was one minute of rage that was stored up from child hood, just let him have it.  (Rest it peace)

2.  Leanord v. Hagler, Las Vegas 1987:  Not much commentary needed.  The refs got it right, Hagler bullied him for a minute here and a minute there, but he could not catch him, and Leanord was landing combos almost immediately and consistenly.  Sugar Ray was a lot of flash and dash, but there was some substance there, and Marvelous Marvin learned it the hardway.

Happy Sunday!!