The greatest heavyweight rematches in boxing history

Anthony Joshua is looking to avenge his shock defeat to Andy Ruiz by winning his world heavyweight titles back in an immediate rematch, but is that the right thing for him to do?

Pundits and former pros have been split on the question, and history suggests it could go either way. There have been ten previous occasions when a beaten heavyweight champion has rematched his conqueror in his next fight - but only three times have they won, with five repeat defeats and two draws.

Here are some of the most memorable ...

Sonny Liston v Floyd Patterson
July 22, 1963

Three years earlier, Floyd Patterson became the first heavyweight champion to regain his title when he avenged a shock defeat to Ingemar Johansson, but he faced a far more intimidating challenge to dethrone Sonny Liston, who had obliterated him in just 126 seconds to take his crown.

Legend has it that Patterson was so embarrassed with the manner of his defeat that he wore a fake beard and glasses to escape the arena afterwards, but despite conceding a huge size advantage he sought instant revenge.

Unfortunately for The Gentleman of Boxing, the rematch went exactly the same way as the first fight. Lison - a 4-1 favourite - floored Patterson three times in the first round and the bout lasted just four seconds longer than the first.

Muhammad Ali v Sonny Liston
May 25, 1965

A prime Muhammad Ali had defeated champion Sonny Liston as a big underdog the previous year when Liston retired on his stool after six rounds.

The rematch had to be postponed for six months while Ali recovered from a hernia, and in between the fights The Greatest had also taken on a central role as a political activist, changing his name from Cassius Clay.

But all the controversy preceding the fight was nothing compared to what happened once the first bell rang.

More on the big fight

Midway through the first round, Ali hit Liston with a short right that most people in attendance didn't even see, but which sent liston crashing to the canvas.

Ali jumped into the air and rang around the ring celebrating, and amid the chaos referee Jersey Joe Walcott didn't start a count.

Liston got back to his feet and the fight resumed, but timekeeper Francis McDonough intervened and told Walcott that he had counted out Liston and the fight was waved off with Ali declared the winner.

The fight was widely branded a fix, and Ali's winning shot would go down in history as The Phantom Punch.

Evander Holyfield v Mike Tyson
June 28, 1997

After years of postponed negotiations, mainly due to Tyson's chaotic private life, Evander Holyfield faced 'Iron' Mike and knocked him out in the 11th round. Holyfield had been backed from 25-1 into 5-1, with Las Vegas bookie Rob Terry stating that no book he knew of managed to escape a beating.

An immediate rematch was scheduled, and it produced one of the most controversial moments in sports history.

The night before the fight, Tyson's former trainer Teddy Atlas predicted that if he couldn't find a knockout punch Tyson would "try to disqualify himself, either by elbowing, or throwing a low blow, butting or biting". He was spot on.

Tyson had struggled to handle Holyfield during the first two rounds and was cut by a clash of heads. When the fighters clinched during the third, Tyson completely lost his mind, biting a chunk out of Holyfield's ear.

Tyson was immediately disqualified, although he was only fined ten per cent of his purse - the maximum permitted - so still scooped $27m.

After the fight, an MGM Grand employee found part of Holyfield's ear in the ring and took it to his locker room telling the security guard: "I have something he probably wants", although it was subsequently lost during the ambulance ride to the hospital.

Hasim Rahman v Lennox Lewis
November 17, 2001

Many pundits have been pointing to Lennox Lewis's rematch with Hasim Rahman as a benchmark for Anthony Joshua to turn the tables on Ruiz.

Lewis had unexpectedly lost his heavyweight title to Rahman an April 2001 when poor preparation ended up with him being knocked out in the fifth round in South Africa, but he was determined to get his crown back.

Lewis, who was a 2-5 favourite for revenge, learned from his mistakes and approached their second fight in Las Vegas with a far more professional mindset.

He won all of the first three rounds, and connected with a big right hand in the fourth that turned Rahman's lights out.