Remember when a great man fought against a great man!

It is rare to see great fighters when they are still at the height of their careers. Four great fighters met in two matches. The only thing is that the two were former champions and not Prime.

Future world heavyweight champion Rocky “Brockton’s big hit” Marciano was 37-0 when he met Joe “Brown Bomber” Louis 66-2 at 52 stops at Madison Square Garden in October 1951. Louis lost his title to former champion Ezard “Cincinnatic Cobra” Charles (66-5-1) at Yankee Stadium in New York in September 1950. His record was still good, but he was not a fighter in the past. He has won eight fights since losing the second time in his career. There were no titles in danger.

After seven rounds, Marciano was ahead with cards 4-2, 5-2 and 4-3. In the eighth round he dropped Louis with a left hook for an eighth count from referee Rudy Goldstein. Marciano then sent Louis through the ropes for a knockout. There was no count. The battle is over.

It was reported that Marciano idolized Louis and shed tears in the dressing room. Louis never fought again.

After five fights, Marciano won the world title and knocked out “Jersey” Joe Walcott (49-18-1) in the 13th round. Walcott was ahead after 12 rounds 7-4, 4-8, and 7-5.

Hank Cisco, one of Marciano’s stables, went to Walcott’s dressing room and asked the Ring’s doctor. He has a broken bone under his eyes and is knocked out with his first solid punch. The mob had Walcott and put him in a rematch eight months later. At 2:25, Marciano knocked out Walcott in the first round.

Marciano ended his career off the canvas in the second round against light heavyweight champion Archie “Old Mongoose” Moore, who was a knockout king, leaving the canvas. Marciano recorded four knockdowns, stopping Moore in the ninth round and finished his career 49-0 with a 43 stop. The record lasted for 62 years before Floyd Mayweather Jr. stopped Conor McGregor, a former MMA champion with no amateur experience and a professional debut.

Another match was between two pound fighters, perhaps the largest ever. Former three-division world champion Henry “Murder Hank” Armstrong (132-17-8) lost 44-1 to future champion “Sugar” Ray Robinson due to a 10-round decision at Madison Square Garden. He was a former champion for 10 years.

Armstrong fought for six more years, losing his final match in February 1945, finishing with a 149-21-10 record at 99 stops.

Three years later, Robinson won the world welterweight title, then the middleweight title. Earlier in the points, he couldn’t continue with 104 degrees outdoor heat at Yankee Stadium in New York in June 1952 against 78-18-4 light heavyweight champion Joey Maxim. Robinson was on the cards at the time, 10-8, 9-8-1, and 7-3-3. Judgment Rudy Goldstein was replaced in the 10th round due to the heat.

Robinson lost his middleweight title to Gene Fulmer (37-3) at Madison Square Garden in 1957. He lost to Joey Archer in 1965, ending his career 44-1, ending with a record of 174-19-1.