Some moments in boxing don’t need dates, rounds, or even the fighters’ names attached. Say the nickname, and the image is immediate - snapshots that became permanent parts of boxing’s collective memory.
The Long Count
In the 1927 heavyweight rematch between Jack Dempsey and Gene Tunney was filled with controversy. After flooring Tunney in the seventh round, Dempsey failed to retreat to a neutral corner, delaying the referee’s count. By the time the count officially began, Tunney had been down far longer than the standard ten seconds.
Tunney rose, survived the round, and went on to win the fight so now nearly a century later, “The Long Count” remains shorthand for one of boxing’s earliest and most enduring debates about rules, fairness, and interpretation.
The Phantom Punch
When Muhammad Ali dropped Sonny Liston in their 1965 rematch, the punch that caused it barely registered in real time. Liston fell and referee Jersey Joe Walcott struggled to control the situation.
Slow-motion replays later showed Ali landed a short right hand, but the damage was already done. The name stuck. “The Phantom Punch” became boxing folklore - a symbol of suspicion, chaos, and a moment when belief mattered as much as evidence.
Rope-a-Dope
Unlike the others, this was a strategy that crystallized into legend. In 1974, Ali leaned back against the ropes and allowed George Foreman to punch himself into exhaustion in Zaire.
Round by round, Foreman faded. In the eighth, Ali seized the moment and stopped him. “Rope-a-Dope” instantly conjures the image of Ali on the ropes and remains one of the most famous tactical masterstrokes in boxing history.
No Mas
Two words that altered a legacy.
In their 1980 rematch, Roberto Duran turned away from Sugar Ray Leonard in the eighth round and quit. Whether he actually said “no mas” or not has been debated ever since, but the meaning was clear.
The phrase became inseparable from the moment. “No Mas” still represents the most infamous surrender in championship boxing.
Fan Man
In 1993, during the heavyweight title rematch between Evander Holyfield and Riddick Bowe at Caesars Palace, a paraglider descended into the ring mid-fight.
The bout halted for over 20 minutes. Security swarmed. Bowe’s pregnant wife collapsed at ringside. The interruption was surreal, unprecedented, and never repeated.
“Fan Man” remains boxing’s strangest interruption up till today.
The Bite Fight
Few moments in sports history are as instantly recognizable.
In 1997, Mike Tyson bit Evander Holyfield’s ear during their rematch in Las Vegas. He did it once, then again. The second bite forced a disqualification and ended the fight.
“The Bite Fight” is remembered because boxing briefly crossed into something chaotic and unforgettable. The image, the bite, the blood, the disbelief - these are burned into sporting history.