You can’t odds these results!
42-1… Buster Douglas KOS Mike Tyson
Going into the 1990 fight in Tokyo, “Iron” Mike had a 37-0 record. No-one gave his fellow American a hope. But the bout saw Douglas, whose mother had recently died, bounce back from being felled in the eighth round to knock out Tyson in the 10th and grab the WBC, WBA and IBF heavyweight titles.
80-1… Japan’s rugby union triumph
The minnows pulled off the biggest shock in rugby history when they beat South Africa 34-32 at the 2015 World Cup. The Cherry Blossoms scored a try in the final minute to secure victory against the Springboks.
100-1… Mon
Mome wins the National
In 2009, jockey Liam Treadwell’s horse came from behind at Aintree to win the race by 12 lengths – the first to do so at such odds since Foinavon in 1967. 150-1… Greece win Euros
Despite being ranked 40th in the world and only having ever qualified for two major tournaments, the gritty Greeks scored an unexpected victory at the European Championships in 2004, beating hosts Portugal 1-0 in the final.
250-1… Goran Ivanisevic is Wimbledon champion
The 6ft 4in Croatian was a wildcard entry to the tournament in 2001 and ranked 125th in the world, but managed to beat Australian Pat Rafter in a thrilling five-set final. He said: “Nobody thought about me, but here I am holding the trophy.”
300-1… Rookie’s golf glory
The 2003 Open Championship, held in the UK, was won by 26-year-old American Ben Curtis – the first debut major winner since Tom Watson in 1975.
500-1… England Ashes stunner
England’s cricketers were seemingly heading for defeat at Headingley in the third Test of the series in 1981, but a blistering 149 not out by Ian Botham, inset, together with inspired bowling from Bob Willis saw them turn the game around and win by 18 runs.
1,000-1… “Miracle on ice”
At the 1980 Winter Olympics the Soviet Union’s ice hockey team were four-time defending gold medallists going into a game against the amateur US side. But the Americans pulled off a surprise 4-3 victory, then went on to beat Finland for gold in the final.
5,000-1… Leicester win the Premier League
No-one gave them a hope of winning the top flight at the start of the 2015/16 season, but the Foxes under Claudio Ranieri pulled off the ultimate soccer fairy tale. The odds that singer Elvis Presley would be found alive were just 2,000-1.
25,095-1… Frankie’s magnificent seven
The bookies lost more than £30million when jockey Frankie Dettori wowed the crowds at Ascot in September 1996 by riding an unprecedented seven winners to victory at total combined odds of 25,095-1.