In truth, the biggest underachievers in boxing are guys almost nobody has ever heard of. Every boxing gym in the country probably has stories about guys who had limitless potential but could never get out of their own way long enough to cultivate it.

The guys on this list all at least had careers. A few of them have achievements that most pro fighters would cut off a finger to attain.

And I want to note that just because I don't think a particular fighter achieved as much as he could have, it doesn't mean he didn't fight as hard as possible every time he climbed into the ring. A lot of factors can contribute to a fighter underachieving. Not all of them are things he can control.

However, some of these guys truly were their own worst enemies.

where the list?

10. Celestino Caballero.



There was a long stretch in the previous decade when Celestino Caballero looked like the type of fighter who might climb weight classes. He had a nice stretch where he held the WBA and IBF titles at super bantamweight, and with his 5'11" height, he certainly looked to have the frame to move up.

In 2010, his career hit a huge roadblock when he dropped a split decision to unheralded Jason Litzau. In truth, the fight wasn't even very close. It seemed like a case where one judge simply couldn't believe he was watching the fighter with the bigger name lose.

Litzau was knocked out in the first round by Adrien Broner in his very next fight. He fought once more, in 2012, and hasn't been heard from since.

Caballero did briefly hold a belt at 126. His career is one many fighters might envy, but he seems to me like a fighter who should have done more.

8. Mike Jones

In October 2011, at a press conference announcing the card for Top Ranks' Miguel Cotto-Antonio Margarito pay-per-view, I heard promoter Bob Arum talk about Mike Jones as a potential future opponent for Manny Pacquiao.

It's a promoter's job to hype fighters, even if that means employing a bit of hyperbole at times. But praising Jones didn't exactly seem outrageous. The Philadelphia fighter was a tall, athletic welterweight with excellent technical ability.

Jones' momentum came to a crashing halt when he faced veteran Randall Bailey for the vacant IBF title in June 2012. In a fight Jones was winning with relative ease, he got dropped with a big shot in Round 10 and was finished off in the 11th.

After that, he stayed out of action for over two years. When he returned to the ring last August, it was against 11-2, relatively unknown Jaime Herrera.

Jones dropped Herrera hard in the second and third rounds, but then what looked like an easy comeback win turned into a war. Jones took a deep cut over the eye and was blistered by big shots in the middle rounds before being forced to retire in his corner after Round 7.

Complete it nah.