From Jack Dempsey, Joe Louis and Rocky Marciano, to Sugar Ray Robinson, Muhammad Ali, Wladimir Klitschko and Anthony Joshua, ESPN take a journey through boxing history ahead of Joshua's world heavyweight tile unification clash with Joseph Parker.
Anthony Joshua's last two fights have seen record crowds at stadiums in the United Kingdom and the fight with Parker is likely to set another. But it won't be the first, nor the last fight to ignite the interest of the public.
Jack Dempsey v Georges Carpentier
Boxing became one of the biggest spectator sports early in the 20th century and Jack Dempsey was the sport's global star. Dempsey, who won the world heavyweight title in 1919, became such a star attraction that a stadium had to be built for a bumper crowd on July 2, 1921. Promoter Tex Rickard borrowed $250,000 to build an all-seat stadium -- known Boyle's Thirty Acres -- in just nine weeks in Jersey City, New Jersey.
In boxing's first million dollar gate -- generating $1,789,238 -- 91,613 watched American Dempsey knock out Frenchman Georges Carpentier at Boyle's Thirty Acres. Dempsey hammered popular Carpentier to a fourth round defeat in a third title defence that took place in the afternoon.
Jack Dempsey v Gene Tunney I & II
Dempsey -- one of the 1920s' biggest stars along with baseball's Babe Ruth -- kept pulling in the crowds and over 80,000 saw him against the likes of Jack Sharkey and Luis Angel Firpo at Yankee Stadium and the Polo Grounds, New York, respectively. But biggest of the lot was the 120,557 who saw Dempsey's world heavyweight title fight against Gene Tunney at the Sesquicentennial Stadium, Philadelphia, on Sept. 23, 1926.
It rained as the American rivals walked to the ring where Tunney pulled off an upset on points. The fight generated $1,895,733, boxing's third million dollar gate. For the rematch, a day short of a year later, a crowd of 104,943 at Soldiers Field, Chicago, produced a gate of $2,858,660. It became known as 'The Long Count' due to the count given to Tunney in round seven. Tunney recovered to again win on points and Dempsey never fought again.
Joe Louis v Max Schmeling
Joe Louis' rematch against Max Schmeling at the Yankee Stadium attracted 70,043 in an event that transcended sport on June 23, 1938. A huge radio audience -- estimated at 100 million and claimed to be the largest ever for a single event -- tuned in. The world heavyweight title fight gripped the world's attention with Louis representing the American Dream while Schmeling was an unwilling tool of the Nazi propaganda machine one year before the start of the Second World War.
Louis, who had held his title for a year, said he would not actually feel like a world champion until he beat Schmeling, who had knocked him out in the 12th round in 1936. Louis, from Alabama, floored Schmeling three times to end their world heavyweight title fight after just 124 seconds. The fight had gross receipts of over $1m. Louis and Schmeling had other big stadium nights.
The Brown Bomber won the title from Jim Braddock in front of 45,000 at Comiskey Park -- home of the Chicago White Sox -- in 1937 while 54,487 saw Louis beat Billy Conn at the Polo Grounds in 1941. Schmeling was a big draw back home in Germany where 70,000 saw his 1939 fight against Adolf Heuser in Stuttgart.
Len Harvey v Jock McAvoy
Boxing also pulled in big crowds in England before the Second World War and the country's biggest ever boxing crowd -- at least 90,000 -- turned up to see Len Harvey defend his British light-heavyweight title on points against Jock McAvoy at White City Stadium, London, on July 10, 1939. Harvey's fourth scrap with McAvoy was a welcome -- if brief -- distraction from the start of war, less than two months away.
Police tried to keep hordes of fans at bay with truncheons and reportedly 10,000 people rushed at one of the entrances. Ticketless fans pulled down three iron gates to get inside and there could well have been more than the 90,000 official figure inside the stadium. According to contemporary reports, the same crowd packed into the same west London venue for Harvey's British heavyweight title fight against Welshman Jack Stevenson in 1934.
There were other big boxing crowds at White City: 70,000 saw the British heavyweight title fight between Jack Doyle and Jack Petersen in 1933; 50,000 witnessed Bruce Woodcock against Lee Savold in 1950 and 44,000 were there for Briton Freddie Mills win over American Gus Lesnevich for the world light-heavyweight title in 1948.
Rocky Marciano v Archie Moore
The heavyweights have always been among boxing's biggest stars and Rocky Marciano was huge in the 1950s. Marciano's final fight against Archie Moore attracted 61,574 at New York's Yankee Stadium on September 21, 1955.
A crowd of 47,585 had turned up at the same venue the previous year to see Marciano beat Ezzard Charles and there was a lot of expectation ahead of him facing reigning light-heavyweight champion Moore as there was speculation it would be his last fight. Marciano got up from being floored in the second round to knock out Moore in the ninth round. The Brockton Blockbuster never fought again and retired aged 31 with a 49-0 unbeaten record.
Sugar Ray Robinson v Randy Turpin
A record crowd for a non-heavyweight fight -- 61,370 -- saw Robinson get revenge over Brit Turpin at the Polo Grounds, New York, on Sept. 12, 1951. More than the 47,968 saw Robinson lose to Joey Maxim the following year at Yankee Stadium. Robinson lost his title in a big shock when he was out-pointed by the Englishman 64 days earlier at the end of an exhausting European tour in front of 18,000 at Earl's Court, London.
Robinson was better prepared for the rematch and finished Turpin with a ferocious and frenzied assault in the tenth round. The rematch was delicately poised when Turpin split Robinson's left eyebrow open in the 10th. Fearing the referee was about to intervene, Robinson produced a blistering attack to stop Turpin with just with eight seconds left in the round.
Muhammad Ali v Henry Cooper II
Henry Cooper was once again betrayed by cuts as The Greatest made a fourth world heavyweight title defence in front of 45,973 at Arsenal's Highbury Stadium, London, on May 21, 1966. Ali's accurate blows left Cooper's face covered in blood and the fight was stopped in the sixth round, dashing the Londoner's hopes of revenge after losing to the American three years earlier.
Cooper, 32, was eight years younger than the American who had won the title in 1964. It was the first world heavyweight title fight in England for 58 years and was front and back page news while millions listened to it live on radio shortly before the start of the 1966 World Cup in England. Three years earlier, 35,000 saw Ali -- then known as Cassius Clay -- stop Cooper on a cut after being floored earlier at Wembley Stadium.
Muhammad Ali v George Foreman
The Rumble in the Jungle, perhaps boxing's most famous fight, attracted a 60,000 crowd to the Stade du 20 Mai in Kinshasa, Zaire -- now the Democratic Republic of Congo -- on October 30, 1974. Zaire's President Mobutu put up $10m to bring the fight to Kinshasa and put the country he had renamed Zaire on the map. The fight was screened to over 100 countries worldwide and began locally at 4 a.m. to accommodate the United States audience.
Ali sat on the ropes and absorbed punishment until George Foreman tired before unloading a stunning combination. Ali looked on the point of collapse after a lot of punishment through his rope-a-dope tactics, but he suddenly went on the attack in the eighth round to floor his fellow American and win back the world heavyweight title at the age of 32.
Muhammad Ali v Leon Spinks II
Ali won the world heavyweight title for a third time in front of 63,350 -- a new record for an indoor boxing event -- at the Superdome, New Orleans, on September 15, 1978. Ali avenged his split decision loss seven months previously to Leon Spinks with a unanimous points decision in front of a 90million estimated television audience in 80 countries. Ali's other big stadium fights included his 1976 clash with Ken Norton at Yankee Stadium (30,000) and the Thrilla in Manilla against Joe Frazier (28,000 at the Araneta Coliseum).
Frank Bruno v Tim Witherspoon
With the emergence of Las Vegas as the capital of world boxing and the stage for the big fights, smaller casinos were preferred to stadium fights from the 1980s. But in England, heavyweight Frank Bruno could be relied upon to draw in big crowds and his biggest crowd came against WBA champion Tim Witherspoon at Wembley Stadium on July 19, 1986.
Hopes were high that Bruno would become Britain's first world heavyweight champion since Bob Fitzsimmons (1897-1899) but a 40,000 crowd was left disappointed as the Londoner succumbed to a 11th round defeat. Bruno lost again when challenged WBC champion Lennox Lewis in front of 25,784 at the National Stadium in Cardiff in 1993 but succeeded at the fourth title tilt when he captured the WBC crown from Oliver McCall on a unanimous points decision in front of 23,000 at Wembley Stadium two years later.
Julio Cesar Chavez v Greg Haugen
The Dempsey-Tunney record of 120,557 for a paid crowd stood for nearly 67 years until 132, 247 saw Mexican idol Julio Cesar Chavez against American Greg Haugen at the Estadio Ezteca (Azteca Stadium) in Mexico City on February 20, 1993. Chavez made a tenth defence of his WBC light-welterweight title after forcing a fifth round stoppage.
There was barbed wire and a moat around the ring to ensure the roped square was not invaded. Haugen angered the home crowd by claiming pre-fight Chavez had only won his last 85 fights as he had fought "Tijuana taxi drivers". Later the same year, 59,995 saw Chavez in a controversial draw against Pernell Whitaker at the Alamodome, Texas. Whitaker retained his title and seemed unfortunate not to be given a clear points win.
Chris Eubank v Nigel Benn
Chris Eubank and Nigel Benn's rematch attracted a 47,000 crowd for their world super-middleweight title unification fight at Old Trafford, home of Manchester United football club, which ended in a controversial draw on October 9, 1993. Three years earlier, Eubank won a brutal middleweight battle against Benn by a ninth round knockout. But the English rivals' rematch did not equal the original encounter's ferocity in front of a U.K. television audience of 17.5 million.
Joe Calzaghe v Mikkel Kessler
Welshman Joe Calzaghe thrilled his home fans with a dominant points win over Denmark's Mikkel Kessler to decide the world's best super-middleweight in front of 50,015 at Cardiff's Millennium Stadium, where Joshua faces Parker this weekend, on November 3, 2007.
It was an indoor record for a boxing event in the UK for Calzaghe's 21st world WBO title defence, which earned him Kessler's WBA and WBC titles. Kessler gave everything he had, but Calzaghe -- buoyed on by a thunderous home crowd -- stood firm to ensure his dominance as the world's best super-middleweight.
Manny Pacquiao v Joshua Clottey; Saul 'Canelo' Alvarez v Liam Smith
AT&T Stadium, formerly Cowboys Stadium and the home of the NFL's Dallas Cowboys in Texas, has hosted two big crowds recently: 50,994 (41,843 without complimentary tickets) for Manny Pacquiao-Joshua Clottey on March 13, 2010 and 51,240 for Saul 'Canelo' Alvarez-Liam Smith on September 17, 2016. Filipino Pacquiao threw three times as many punches as Clottey in a one-sided defence of his WBO world welterweight title.
Mexican Canelo stopped England's Smith with a body shot in the ninth round for the WBO super welterweight title in 2016. Both fights showed the appeal of Pacquiao and Canelo to attract audiences even though they were not against big name opponents. Also in Texas, 45,368 turned up to see Oscar De La Hoya's win over 20-1 underdog Patrick Charpentier at the Sun Bowl in 1998.
Wladimir Klitschko v David Haye
In front of 57,000 in lashing rain at the Imtech-Arena in Hamburg, and an estimated worldwide television audience of 500million, Wladimir Klitschko comfortably out-pointed England's David Haye on July 2, 2011. Victory made Ukrainian Klitschko a three-belt world heavyweight champion after he added Haye's WBA title to his IBF and WBO straps. Klitschko regularly fought in front of large crowds in Germany, where along with his brother Vitali he was a big star.
Klitschko's nine-and-a-half year reign came to an end in front of 55,000 at the ESPRIT arena, Düsseldorf, when Haye's fellow Englishman Tyson Fury upset the odds with a unanimous points decision in 2015. Klitschko drew similar crowds against Eddie Chambers and Jean Marc Mormeck while 61,000 saw him fight Ruslan Chagaev at the Veltins Arena, Gelsenkirchen.
Carl Froch v George Groves
Carl Froch's world super-middleweight title rematch with George Groves at Wembley Stadium broke the British post-War record for a boxing record. The 80,000 that saw Froch knock out his English rival in the eighth round on May 31, 2014 beat the 55,000 who saw Ricky Hatton beat Juan Lazcano in a non-title fight at the City of Manchester Stadium in 2008. After defending his IBF and WBA belts, Froch retired after claiming nothing could beat his win over Groves.
Anthony Joshua v Wladimir Klitschko, Carlos Takam
Anthony Joshua knocked out Kitschko in his last fight in front of 90,000 at Wembley Stadium on April 29, 2017. The attendance matched the biggest ever recorded for a boxing event in Britain and saw England's Joshua add the WBA world heavyweight title to his IBF belt. In one of the best heavyweight title fights for years, Joshua floored Klitschko three times in an 11th round win after getting off the canvas himself in the sixth round.
Joshua's magnetic power in the U.K. attracted a 78,000 crowd to Cardiff's Principality Stadium on Oct. 28, 2017 for his tenth round stoppage win over late substitute opponent Carlos Takam. It did not matter that Cameroon-born Takam was little known -- the largest attendance ever for an indoor boxing event still turned up for the WBA-IBF world heavyweight champion. It was an astonishing crowd for an English boxer in Wales. It was 28,000 more than Calzaghe -- Wales' best boxer in living memory -- got 10 years previously for his biggest career fight.