Bob Arum picks 'street brawl' and Muhammad Ali classic as his two favourite fights

The 94-year-old's promotional outfit on Wednesday announced a multi-year broadcast partnership with DAZN, bringing another set of boxing stars to the Global Home of Boxing. 

Top Rank has been promoting some of boxing's biggest names for 60 years, and has seen Arum work with the likes of Muhammad Ali, Marvin Hagler and Roberto Duran to name a few. 

It's safe to say Arum has seen everything in the sport of boxing, but there are two fights in his opinion which stand out above the rest. 

The 'street brawl' between Hagler and Hearns

When asked by DAZN's Chris Mannix about his favourite fight to be involved with, Arum picked the 1985 epic between Marvin Hagler and Thomas Hearns for the undisputed middleweight title. 

Reflecting on the contest, Arum called it a "street brawl" after a build-up which saw both men become hostile towards each other. 

"There are two candidates, one is my all-time favourite fight, ‘Marvelous’ Marvin Hagler and Tommy Hearns," Arum said. 

"The tour we had them go on to publicise the fight, these two great guys, and for some reason they rubbed each other the wrong way.

"By the time the bell rang for the fight, they forgot everything they knew about boxing and they wanted to make it a street brawl, and it was fantastic."

The fight is known for an epic opening round, and one which some believe is the best in boxing history. 

This set the tone for a relatively short title fight which ended in a third round knockout from Hagler. 

Ali vs. Frazier 'Thrilla in Manila' an incredible experience - Arum

It's no surprise that Arum also picked arguably Muhammad Ali's greatest performance as one of his favourites to have promoted. 

October 1, 1975, saw Ali and Joe Frazier meet for a third and final time in the 'Thrilla in Manila', and what transpired was one of the greatest fights in the history of boxing. 

"Ali with his superior boxing skills, took a lead, but nothing could deter Frazier," Arum began when recalling the world heavyweight title fight. 

"He came on, and it looked like he was finishing Ali, and Ali put himself in a position where he wasn’t going to lose, fired back at Frazier and hit Frazier enough that he closed his eyes.

"Frazier’s trainer would not let him come out for the 15th round and Ali won that fight, and that was an incredible experience."

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