(Ratings and records compiled by boxing expert Dan Cuoco)

The sad saga of "The White Hope" era in boxing was, as most fight fans know, the result of Jack Johnson becoming the first black man to win the heavyweight championship of the world. The magnificent Johnson, a fighter best known as a masterful boxer and a defensive genius, was probably even better than most people think. Johnson, a strapping 6', 200 pound heavyweight (big for those days), always appeared if he was holding something back, as if he was almost afraid to unleash his incredible power. There's little doubt that had he chosen to slug more and box less, his knockout rate would have been much higher. Boxing historian John D. McCallum said in his book The World Heavyweight Boxing Championship: A History, that "Johnson gave the lasting impression of a fighter who was under wraps, who never extended himself to the limit. You always had the feeling that he could have destroyed his opponent whenever he wished."

But this is not the "story" of Jack Johnson; it's a look at the fighters who many hoped would end Johnson's reign as heavyweight king; it's a look at those men who fought during that unfortunate time when skin color, not talent could propel you to the top of the rankings. As you'll see, thanks to boxing historian Dan Cuoco, most of the "White Hopes" should have been called "No Hopes".