Today wasn’t bad either, although it was set up by yesterday.
It’s still today here!
An enjoyable test, especially for us English. It won’t go down as one of the greatest because at least from lunch today there wasn’t really a realistic chance of a NZ victory.
Mustn’t grumble though…
I keep forgetting that New Zealand lives in the future, I got to scowl over breakfast when I heard the result
The Foreman-Lyle fight was pretty good.
OP says sports and mentions wrestling, not sure if pro wrestling is what the poster had in mind but I’m going to do it anyway.
In terms of sheer spectacle it would probably be Hulk Hogan vs. Andre the Giant at WrestleMania III in 1987. This was the main event of the card with the highest wrestling attendance in history up to that time, pitting two of the biggest names in wrestling against each other. The match itself was objectively not good - Andre was way past his prime and barely mobile, for one thing - but all the kids and the casual fans who were drawn into it hardly would have noticed. The story line and the hype leading up to the match was all masterfully done.
But spectacle and historical importance aside and just from a standpoint of exciting in-ring action, the short list of candidates for greatest of all time would include:
Randy Savage vs. Ricky Steamboat, also from WrestleMania III - 15 minutes is a bit short for an all-time classic wrestling match but those 15 minutes are absolutely packed, with some unbelievable back-and-forth sequences. The brisk running time also makes it an ideal introduction for someone unfamiliar with wrestling - if this match can’t make you a fan, I doubt anything will.
Ric Flair vs. Ricky Steamboat at WrestleWar '89 - simply wrestling artistry at its finest by two of the greats, the third in a series of excellent matches between the two. They do all the little things perfectly which makes it a real treat for fans who watch wrestling for the in-ring storytelling.
Bret Hart vs. Stone Cold Steve Austin, no DQ, submissions-only match, WrestleMania 13, 1997- both wrestlers pushing each other to the limits of their abilities for the stage of WrestleMania. The sight of Austin a bloodied mess but still refusing to submit is one of the all-time enduring images of wrestling. The ending is also special for pulling off the tricky and rare “double turn” (when the good guy and bad guy coming into the match swap their respective roles).
Kenta Kobashi vs. Mitsuharu Misawa, AJPW, January 1997 - I couldn’t do a list like this without including anything from Japan, where wrestling is generally presented as more of a real sport that emphasizes athleticism instead of the silliness commonly found in American wrestling. Kobashi (in green) was the defending champion but had never been able to defeat Misawa decisively. The whole match is a chess game of moves, counter-moves, weakening body parts to set up a big move in the future, slow builds and then crazy sick moves seemingly out of nowhere. They had other matches in 1999 and 2003 that are arguably even BETTER than this one.
Whoops, make that Kobashi in red. Oh well.
Australian Rules
Limiting the choice to marque games:
2005 Grand Final Sydney Swans 8.10 (58) defeated West Coast Eagles 7.12 (54)
1989 Grand Final Hawthorn 21.18 (144) defeated Geelong 21.12 (138)
1995 ANZAC Day Collingwood 17.9 (111) drew with Essendon 16.15 (111)
Too late. You have lost all credibility with me.
Jack Nicklaus vs. Tom Watson, Turnberry 1977. Never seen anything like it-two golfers at the absolute pinnacle of their games (many shots clear of the field), pulling off miracle shot after miracle shot. Lord how I hated the little essobee, but here I am 30 years later rooting for him to win another.
I can’t remember the sports writer who referred to that fight as the most two-sided fight in heavyweight history.
Other great bouts:
[ul][li]Joe Louis-Billy Conn. For twelve rounds Conn was the future heavyweight champion of the world. Then he tried to slug with Louis, and with two seconds left in the thirteenth he was the former future heavyweight champion of the world.[/li][li]The most exciting fight I ever saw was Matthew Saad Muhammed- Yaqui Lopez II. Saad Muhammed kept getting hammered, and kept coming back with both guns blazing. Finally Lopez ran out of gas from hitting him so much. If it had been in a movie, I would have said it was too unrealistic. [/li][li]I have witnessed three of the greatest upsets in heavyweight history - Leon Spinks over Muhammed Ali, Michael Spinks over Larry Holmes, and Buster Douglas over Mike Tyson. All three fights where you sat on the edge of your seat thinking “can he bring it off?” And then he did.[/li][li]And for sheer tactical brilliance, my favorite fighter, Roberto Duran, over Carlos Palomino. Duran was at his fantastic peak - he had Palomino ducking away from punches that never came, and getting clobbered by ones that did. All three judges scored the fight 9-1. [/li]
Duran did a lot of that kind of fights - his win over Leonard, his merciless beating of Davy Moore in his comeback win of the junior middle title, and his dissection of Esteban de Jesus in their third fight. When Duran’s head was right, he could make the other guy fight on Duran’s terms, and clobber the hell out of him while he did it. [/ul]
Regards,
Shodan
Really? I’m barely old enough to remember that game, but to me the most memorable game in World Series history has to be game 6 of the 1986 Series between the New York Mets and the Boston Red Sox. I admit, I am a Mets fan, and thus biased, but that game was a nailbiter right to the end. When the Away team scores in extra innings, you rarely see the home team answer to keep the game going or to win, and the Mets’ last 2 runs, when they were down to their final out, came on a wild pitch, and a walk-off error.
As a biased Red Sox fan I’d say Game 4 of the 2004 ALCS.
Why is it interesting? Bottom 9, down a run, the best closer in the history of the game on the mound; only the most insane Red Sox fan thought this series had a chance. The Sox had just got their ass kicked by 11 runs in Game 3. But during Millar’s at bat to lead off the inning they showed the clock go from 11:59 to 12:00 and it was a brand new day. Anything could happen!
Some favourite boxing bouts:
Tyson v Holyfield: (the first fight, the second was interrupted by that idiot paraglider and lost all momentum).
Benn v McClellan: Obviously overshadowed by the serious injury to McClennan, but a breathtaking fight.
MacAuley v Bassa. (first fight) Bassa’s class showed in the end.
“The War” Hearns v Hagler. A rare case of ‘believe the hype’.
Curry v Honeghan. Probably the biggest upset in the history of boxing.
Hearns v Duran. Short, but brutal (describes the fight and Duran;)).
Can’t really claim it as a great, but Joe Bugner lived in my town and was a big hero to all us local kids. In a much hyped (in the UK) fight he beat Richard Dunne in the first round, having knocked him down for the third time in two and a half minutes.
Olympic moments:
(yeah, I know, not strictly bouts or matches…)
I have never ever felt more proud to be British than when I watched Danny Boyle’s extraordinary “Happy and Glorious” shambles at the 2112 Opening Ceremony. It captured Britain perfectly.
In 1972, the first Olympic Games I remember, the sight of the Israeli apartments where Black September were holding hostages is, unfortunately, the first thing that comes to my mind.
But the second is a runner. Not a Brit, but an American 800 metres runner who wore a cap. He was always last on the first lap but always won. My sisters and I were enthralled by Dave Wottle.
As an Astros fan, the game I remember that year is game 6 of the NLCS. What made it great was the extra innings and the back and forth, especially Billy Hatcher’s home run off the left field foul pole in the bottom of the 14th inning. All the missed chances in that game are still heartbreaking all these years later, especially because Mike Scott was set to go for the Astros in game 7, which any Astros fan will tell you was a virtual lock.
Maybe this is just my personal fandom speaking, but I think I that’s it’s without bias that I name the 2014 AL Wild Card Game as a credible candidate for the most exciting baseball game ever played. Down 7-3 going into the bottom of the 8th inning, the Kansas City Royals, playing their first post-season game in 29 years, strung together singles and stolen bases, pinch-hitters and pinch-runners to tie the score at 7 by the time the 9th inning ended. After scoreless 10th and 11th, the Oakland A’s took an 8-7 lead in the top of the 12th. But in the bottom of the inning, the Royals tied the game on an improbable Baltimore chop, and then won it on a single just under the glove of the A’s diving third baseman.
As a Royals fan, I was, just a week earlier, hoping the Royals would win the division and not have to play the Wild-Card Game to make it to the next round of playoffs. In hindsight, I’d hate to have been robbed of the experience of that game.
The 1972 Summit Series (hockey) between Canada and the USSR is still talked about in Canada.
Paul Henderson’s goal with 34 seconds left sealed it for Canada. This goal and series will be talked about in Canada, and probably Russia forever.
We’ve had a bunch of good Super Bowls lately, aside from the last two. I thought about the Pats-Giants 18-1 game but honestly it was kind of boring. Other than the Tyree catch, the play was mostly unexceptional. It was the background of the game that made it great, not the game itself.
Formula One, or any motorsport for that matter: the 1993 European Grand Prix at Donington. The first lap might have been better to watch than any full race in history (RIP Ayrton.)
journeyman_southpaw, I’m surprised at the lack of love for The Ladder Match: Razor Ramon v. Shawn Michaels. Weirdly, I think this was also in '93. One that 99% of wrestling fans have probably forgotten: Benoit/Malenko v. NWO in WCW in a cage in 1999. This is the only time I can remember jumping out of my chair and yelling during a pro wrestling match.
“England Collapse.” 
This is one of those things that I’m going to be thinking about for hours after I log off and kick myself for not saying this game or that game… But… under the gun, these are what came to mind.
2007 Fiesta Bowl- Football- Oklahoma vs. Boise St. This game was bonkers. Boise St was undefeated, but still a small school going against a traditional football powerhouse from a power conference… so it had a David vs. Goliath feel to begin with. Boise St probably feeling a little disrespected- they get a pretty decent lead. Oklahoma scores 25 straight to come back and take the lead with not much time left. Then Boise State with the Hook and Ladder… and then the Statue of Liberty (!) play in OT to win it. Such a fun game to watch.
2004 ALCS- Baseball- Yankees vs. Red Sox. Down 3 games to 0 and fighting for their lives Games 4 and 5 going to extra innings were so intense. Occasionally a sporting event will make me scream out in surprise and joy and its rare that this doesn’t involve a team I’m personally invested in- Big Papi’s homer in game 4 was one of those moments. Then the Bloody Sock game. I don’t even really care for the Yanks or the Sox, but those games were great!
2011 Womens World Cup Quarterfinal USA vs. Brazil: The US was getting SCREWED out of this game. Somehow, someway… the soccer gods reached down and granted Rapinoe a magical cross onto the head of Abby Wambach giving us a chance with penalties. I hesitated to put this here, because my knowledge of soccer history is rudimentary and so in the grand scheme of soccer matches it probably doesn’t really compare… but, Wambach’s goal is maybe the greatest soccer moment I’ve witnessed live.
So… these are the first three things I thought of when I read the title. I’ll probably have a dozen more games in mind this evening…
The three Gatti Ward fights are great. 2 out of 3 sent both guys to the trauma ward - they both just refused to stay down.
But I have to agree that that one of the all-time anything matches was Nadal-Federer in Wimbledon 2008 - that was about as perfect as sporting gets.