The 10 scariest fighters in boxing reimagined as classic horror films

By Elliot Worsell

ODDLY, regardless of the very fact boxing consists of scores of well-trained women and men attempting to punch each other in the pinnacle till somebody is left unconscious, the scariest facets of the game don’t have anything to do with the boxers in any way.

Though it’s true, sure, that occasions in the ring can generally grow to be scary, and that boxing, by nature, will invariably flip goals into nightmares, the true horror tales are in reality discovered exterior the ring. Indeed, it’s there you can see the true unhealthy guys: the ghosts, the monsters, the killers. It is there you’ll hear issues or see issues that make your pores and skin crawl and have you ever wanting to modify on each gentle in the home the second you get house. It is there you need to keep away from strolling late at evening.

And but on this Halloween, as a result of we are able to’t unmask the Jasons and Michaels of this sport for worry of the results, and since it’s too apparent to say Conor Benn vs. Chris Eubank Jnr is the scariest horror story boxing can inform at the moment, we should as an alternative concentrate on the boxers themselves. So, to that finish, listed below are 10 who’ve mastered the artwork of giving opponents the heebie-jeebies, as properly as the horror films that finest complement every of them.

1) The Fighter: Naoya Inoue, 25-0 (22)

The Film: Ôdishon (Audition)

To take a look at Naoya Inoue, you’d by no means consider him as a person answerable for knocking out 22 of 25 opponents en path to turning into probably the most feared man in boxing. He is, in spite of everything, simply 5 foot 5 and weighs barely 122 kilos. However, watch him in the ring for any size of time and your notion of him, similar to the notion of the woman in Audition who transitions from marriage materials into one thing else, will change in an prompt. It is then you will note the hazard. It is then you will note the phobia in the opponent’s eyes. It is then you’ll perceive why the “Monster” is the person from whom most opponents attempt to escape.

Another monstrous efficiency from Inoue (Getty Images)

2) The Fighter: Artur Beterbiev, 19-0 (19)

The Film: The Exorcist

When setting foot inside a boxing ring, Russia’s Artur Beterbiev cuts the determine of a person possessed. Intent, it appears, on leaving opponents horizontal by any means vital, he wastes no time easing his method into fights, or “feeling” an opponent out, and as an alternative appears to complete them as swiftly as potential. Stopping him, by no means thoughts beating him, would require a degree of technical brilliance or commensurate energy few in the light-heavyweight division possess. Either that or an exorcist.

3) The Fighter: Deontay Wilder, 43-2-1 (42)

The Film: Jaws

The apparent connection right here is that Deontay Wilder each targets and cracks jaws and has gained 42 of 46 skilled fights inside the gap as a result of he is excellent at doing each. However, there may be extra to this hyperlink than simply that; take into account, for instance, the Jaws theme, its sense of foreboding, and the way Wilder, too, is for opponents not in contrast to a shark going in for the kill. Something, in different phrases, is coming however, for all of your screams and flailing round, haven’t any probability of stopping.

Deontay Wilder nails Tyson Fury with a left hand (Harry How/Getty Images)

4) The Fighter: Oleksandr Usyk, 21-0 (14)

The Film: The Silence of the Lambs

To evaluate the enigmatic Usyk with a personality like Hannibal Lecter might be unfair, for Usyk appears the type, nice kind. Yet there are nonetheless sure similarities, for positive. A pleasant sufficient face, for instance, is one thing they each share, as properly as undoubted charisma. There can be then the darkness behind the eyes, coupled with their capacity to modify from pleasantries to ache in an prompt.

Usyk unsettles Dubois with a mixture (Getty Images)

5) The Fighter: Terence Crawford, 40-0 (31)

The Film: Alien

Crawford, it’s true, has little or no in frequent with Sigourney Weaver’s Ripley, nor, from what I can collect, has he ever skilled something exploding from his abdomen. That mentioned, nevertheless, the welterweight champion is definitely, in boxing phrases, an alien of kinds; somebody whose expertise is otherworldly and whose whole conviction in his mission to hunt and destroy seems laborious to cease at this stage in his skilled profession.

Terence Crawford lands his proper hook on Errol Spence (Getty Images)

6) The Fighter: Gervonta Davis, 29-0 (27)

The Film: The Omen

Easily mistaken for a kid on account of his diminutive dimension, if you’re to strategy Gervonta Davis incorrectly, you could quickly uncover that he’s not a baby in any respect. Instead, what burns inside Davis is one thing moderately terrifying, very like Damien from The Omen, and this normally comes out of him on struggle evening, when typically he’s spiteful, violent, and devilish.

Gervonta Davis targets the physique of Ryan Garcia at T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas, Nevada (Getty Images)

7) The Fighter: David Benavidez, 27-0 (23)

The Film: A Nightmare on Elm Street

Tall, rangy, and highly effective in addition, Benavidez has lengthy been a stylistic nightmare for super-middleweights and it is just now, on the age of 26, he’s beginning to get the alternatives his expertise deserves. Previously, many super-middleweights had most well-liked to look elsewhere when concentrating on opponents and whereas subsequent month (November 25) he will get the prospect to point out his high quality towards Demetrius Andrade, the struggle Benavidez actually desires is towards Saul “Canelo” Alvarez subsequent 12 months.

David Benavidez (Getty Images)

8) The Fighter: Emanuel Navarrete, 38-1 (31)

The Film: 28 Days Later

Far greater than only a zombie, in fact, Mexican Emanuel Navarrete does nonetheless have a novel type and an admirable capability to maintain approaching sturdy when his opponent has began to weaken. This trait has helped him run over 38 opponents so far, successful world titles in three weight lessons in the method. It has additionally landed him a popularity as a boxer from whom you possibly can run however can’t cover.

Emanuel Navarrete goes to work on Oscar Valdez (Mikey Williams/Top Rank Inc through Getty Images)

9) The Fighter: David Morrell, 9-0 (8)

The Film: Candyman

Cuban southpaw David Morrell is a super-middleweight undefeated in 9 fights (with eight of these wins coming inside the gap) who believes that many in the 168-pound division haven’t any curiosity in preventing him, be it now or in the longer term. His identify, he feels, is one they refuse to say as soon as, not to mention 5 occasions, for worry of what could occur and what it could carry to their door.

David Morrell (Getty Images)

10) The Fighter: Leigh Wood, 28-3 (17)

The Film: It Follows

Similar to Navarrete, Leigh Wood’s popularity for by no means giving up at this level precedes him. He walks ahead, he takes his licks, and he refuses to be overwhelmed till both disconnected from his senses or the struggle ends and the scorecards are being delivered. Until then, he maintains an unshakeable perception in his capacity to win the struggle and switch a shedding state of affairs right into a successful one, which is exactly what he did towards Michael Conlan final 12 months and Josh Warrington this 12 months.

Leigh Wood lands his fight-changing proper hook on Josh Warrington (Mark Robinson Matchroom Boxing)

Honourable Mention: Tim Tszyu, 24-0 (17)

The Film: Hereditary

Tim Tszyu’s father, Kostya, had a sure aura about him which made it very tough for opponents to not concede floor when in the ring with him and in the end cede to his energy and punch energy as the struggle progressed. It would seem, too, that Tim has inherited this similar capacity, for he, like his father, will typically management the centre of the ring with a poise and maturity that belies his relative inexperience.

Tim Tszyu assaults Brian Mendoza throughout their struggle at Gold Coast Convention and Exhibition Centre on October 15, 2023 in Gold Coast, Australia (Bradley Kanaris/Getty Images)