The fight was memorable for several reasons. Chavez was knocked down for the first time in his career and had points deducted twice for low blows. Randall won by split decision, ending a winning streak that lasted nearly 14 years. Chavez later gained revenge in the rematch, winning a technical decision after the fight was stopped due to a clash of heads.

Before Chavez, Sugar Ray Robinson set a standard that few players ever approached. Robinson won his first 40 professional fights before losing to Jake LaMotta in February 1942. The defeat turned out to be only a ephemeral setback.

Three weeks later, Robinson defeated LaMotta in a rematch and began another remarkable streak. Between 1943 and 1951, Robinson won 91 consecutive fights, which remains one of the most impressive achievements in boxing history.

Several other champions ended their careers undefeated or came close to doing so. Mayweather finished his career with a record of 50-0 after winning world titles in five weight classes. Marciano left the sport undefeated with a 49-0 record as heavyweight champion.

Larry Holmes appeared on track to equal Marciano’s heavyweight record before he met Michael Spinks in September 1985. Holmes entered the fight with a 48-0 record, but lost by compact decision, one win shy of matching Marciano.

Joe Calzaghe also finished his career undefeated. The Welsh southpaw retired with a 46-0 record after unifying a share of the super middleweight championship and later defeating Roy Jones Jr. and Bernard Hopkins.

History books also contain the names of players whose long winning streaks have largely faded from public memory. According to Harry Mullan’s The Ultimate Encyclopedia of Boxing, Britain’s Hal Bagwell had a winning streak of 183 fights between 1938 and 1948. Packey McFarland recorded 97 consecutive victories between 1905 and 1915, while Spaniard Pedro Carrasco recorded a streak of 93 victories between 1964 and 1971.

Figures from boxing’s first decades can be hard to verify due to incomplete record-keeping and differences between official figures and newspaper decisions. Still, they’re a reminder that winning streaks existed long before the era of television.

Whether measured by the number of victories, longevity or the level of adversity he faced, Robinson’s 91-fight streak and Chavez’s undefeated march through the 1980s remain one of the greatest streaks in history. These are achievements that still stand alongside the perfect records of Mayweather, Marciano and Calzaghe whenever boxing’s longest winning streaks are discussed.

Tyson Fury failed when he twice tried to hand Oleksandr Usyk his first professional defeat in 2024. Now his uncle and former coach, Peter Fury, has highlighted a key reason why he believes the ‘Gypsy King’ was unable to beat the Ukrainian.

Peter Fury trained his nephew before famously winning the world heavyweight title against Wladimir Klitschko in 2015, which was arguably the most impressive victory of his career. However, after a three-year break from the sport, Fury returned with Ben Davison in his corner.

Davison teamed with Fury for five fights until SugarHill Steward was named for the rematch with Deontay Wilder; a move that proved successful because “Kronk’s” style helped the Fury to two legendary triumphs over the “Brown Bomber”.

However, fighting for the undisputed throne, Fury and Steward were unable to defeat Usyk, and the Briton suffered the first defeat of his career before losing again in the rematch.

I’m talking to talkSPORT BoxingPeter Fury, who trained Rico Verhoeven in his controversial clash with Usyk last month, explained that his nephew was not forward enough in his fights with Usyk, believing he did not exploit his height to his advantage.

“As soon as the opening bell rings [went] and I saw how he was doing, I thought, “He’s doing it wrong.” You’re the bigger man, you step on 20 stone and do all the wrong things; instead of moving forward [you’re] standing back.

“He has his team there and I’m not criticizing anyone, but both tactics were not good in both fights. Something went wrong because when you look at Usyk’s structure and what he does, if you distance yourself and try to box an elite boxer who is lighter than you, who is giving away pounds, he will harass you all over the shop.”

Verhoeven’s efforts and Peter Fury’s tactics against Usyk have been praised over the past two weeks and described by some as hosting Usyk’s “toughest professional fight”, and the Dutchman has now climbed into the world rankings despite losing the fight.

Katie Taylor will retire from her professional career on September 5 in Croke Park, Dublin, with her promoter Matchroom Boxing expected to confirm the fight at a news conference at the stadium on Friday. The gala will be Taylor’s first fight at Ireland’s national stadium, which will headline her campaign from 2022.

Taylor, 39, will face Flora Pili of France for the vacant WBC super lightweight title Reported to BoxingScene. Taylor already holds the WBA, IBF and WBO 140-pound belts, so a victory would restore her undisputed status at that weight and make her a three-time undisputed champion in two divisions.

The WBC title became available after Sandy Ryan left the sport to have a child. Pili, the mandatory challenger to Taylor’s IBF title, is the top contender for the vacant belt.

Pili’s road to the headline

Pili (12-0, 2 KO) turned professional in 2019 and within three years won the French junior welterweight title. The 28-year-old from Saint-Avold added a European title in 2023 and won the IBO belt in December with a 10-round majority decision over Serbian Jelena Janicijevic. She hasn’t faced an opponent of Taylor’s stature before.

Taylor (25-1, 6 KO) won Olympic gold in London in 2012 and five amateur world titles before turning professional in 2016. She became the undisputed champion at lightweight and again at super lightweight, and last fought in July when she defeated Amanda Serrano for the third time in a trilogy at Madison Square Garden, streaming on Netflix.

First Croke Park fight since 1972

The event will be the first boxing event at Croke Park since Muhammad Ali defeated Al “Blue” Lewis in a non-title fight in 1972. The owner of the 82,000-seat stadium is the Gaelic Athletic Association, and Eddie Hearn cited the inability to reach an agreement with the GAA as the reason for the suspension of previous attempts to organize the Taylor fight there.

Speaking to RTE earlier this year, Taylor described the venue as the final ambition of her career. “Ending my career in Croke Park would be the icing on the cake. I’ve fought at Madison Square Garden. I’ve fought at the Excel Arena in London. I’ve fought all over the world. Honestly, it might even top everything if I ended my career here,” she said.

Friday’s press conference will be held in Croke Park and will be broadcast on DAZN. Ticket information and final opponent confirmation are expected to be released at the time of announcement.