What's at Stake in the Biggest Fights Remaining in 2014?

That moment right before the bell rings to start a big fight is amazing. Even for fights I wasn't that excited about—Floyd Mayweather vs. Marcos Maidana 2—I still find myself clapping and sitting on the edge of my seat as that special moment finally arrives.

For fans like you and me, that moment is exciting, but I can't imagine what that same moment is like for boxers. Several months of promotion and weeks of training gets turned into at most 36 minutes of in-ring action; the nervousness, anxiousness and probably fear at that moment has to be enormous.

Before I go any further, no the Manny Pacquiao vs. Chris Algieri fight is not on this list. Even though it is a pay-per-view fight, I couldn't bring myself to put it on a list of the "biggest fights," considering the mismatch in talent and how little excitement and hype there has been for the match.

I often get this question in the comments section, "Why did you put this boxer's picture on the front page when he wasn't included on the list?"

The reason for that is—you can agree or disagree—I don't want to tip my hand as to who is going to be on the list, so I try to include a boxer or boxers who nearly made the list or at least connect or relate to the topic being discussed. They're relevant, but it doesn't reveal any information before I want it to be revealed.

That may seem minor to some, but I like to let the list unfold without giving anything away up front. With that settled, on to what is at stake in the biggest remaining fights of the year.

What's at stake can be settling a score, winning a title, winning an elimination fight for a future shot at a title, getting an opportunity to put oneself in the running for bigger paying fights or simply needing a victory to bounce back from defeat or launch a career.

While 2014 has certainly not lived up to the excellent boxing calender from 2013—especially the amazing finish we had over the fall and winter last year—there are still many big fights remaining with a ton on the line to set up what will hopefully be a better year in 2015.

Here's what's at stake.

Terence Crawford vs. Raymundo Beltran

John Peterson/Associated Press

What's At Stake: Terence Crawford's lightweight title and his status as a future star

Crawford has already had an amazing year by winning a world title in March over Ricky Burns and then knocking out Yuriorkis Gamboa in dramatic fashion in his first defense of that title.

Currently the talent pool at 140 and 147 is much deeper with the Al Haymon fighters and Showtime than Top Rank and HBO, so after those two sensational wins Crawford has become a boxer whom many want to see move up in weight and put in bigger fights, including a possible match against Manny Pacquiao.

Crawford decided to stay at 135 for at least one more fight as he makes the second defense of his title against Raymundo Beltran. If Crawford once again sells out the arena, draws a big TV crowd and wins impressively, then his stock will continue to rise.

If he loses, all of that goes away.

Crawford wouldn't suddenly be relegated to fights on basic cable after one loss, but the potential to move up for a fight against Pacquiao, Timothy Bradley or any other top welterweight would be dead for quite awhile.

The carrot is within reach for Crawford, but he most avoid stumbling on his final few steps before reaching a big payday fight. His upcoming fight against Beltran—ESPN.com's second-ranked lightweight—won't be easy which is arguably what he needs to keep impressing the decision-makers at Top Rank and HBO.

If Crawford wins impressively, I think he'll possibly be just one fight away from facing Pacquiao in the fall of 2015; there are literally millions on the line for Crawford besides just keeping his belt.

Nonito Donaire vs. Nicholas Walters

Kin Cheung/Associated Press

What's At Stake: Nonito Donaire's featherweight belt and his status as a legitimate top-level fighter

Like a pitcher who suddenly lost velocity on his fastball, Donaire just doesn't seem to have the same "stuff" anymore since his sensational 2012 when he was the consensus fighter of the year. Donaire doesn't seem as aggressive, his power isn't quite as significant and he's letting lesser boxers hang around too long.

The 2012 Donaire would have destroyed the last two boxers he's faced. Yet Donaire trailed on two scorecards going into the ninth round of his 10-round rematch against Vic Darchinyan before knocking him out in the ninth, and he then followed that up with an unimpressive showing against Simpiwe Vetyeka in May.

The win over Vetyeka in his last fight earned him a featherweight belt, but it was hard to be impressed by that victory.

Donaire didn't break any rules, but he did seem to take advantage of them by telling the referee he could no longer continue—cut from a head butt—after he knew he was likely ahead on the scorecards after a fourth-round knockdown.

If Donaire thought he wasn't ahead, there's no way he would have asked the match to be stopped.

He didn't cheat, but it didn't leave a great taste in my mouth. Maybe I'm overreacting, but besides his fourth-round knockdown, the fight seemed pretty even, and it appeared Donaire looked for an easy way out in a title fight of all matches.

Maybe I read the situation wrong, but that's the feeling I had after the match.

Up next Donaire fights Nicholas Walters who is undefeated and has shown great power with 20 knockouts in 24 career fights. Walters has more power than either of Donaire's last two opponents and is ranked higher on ESPN.com's featherweight rankings and is actually ranked higher than Donaire by Ring Magazine.

If Donaire doesn't find whatever it is he lost after the Guillermo Rigondeaux match, not only will he lose his title, but he'll probably face questions about whether or not he's still capable of being a major contender as he approaches the age of 32.

Sam Soliman vs. Jermain Taylor

Frank Augstein/Associated Press

What's At Stake: Sam Soliman's IBF middleweight title and a chance for a unification fight for the winner

Neither Soliman nor Jermain Taylor is thought of as a top star in the sport at this point in his career, but both have a chance to notch a big victory and possibly step back into the spotlight.

Soliman has 11 losses on his resume, and Taylor hasn't been relevant on a major level since 2009, so both fighters have a lot to gain with a victory.

A victory could mean that the winner would have the opportunity to face either Gennady Golovkin or the winner of the Matt Korobov vs. Demetrius Andrade fight for the vacant WBO title in a unification fight on likely a premium channel like HBO.

Neither fighter is anywhere near a premium-channel regular at this point, so a fight against Golovkin could mean a big pay day. It's worth noting that Golovkin tried to make a fight with Soliman after his victory over Daniel Geale, but Soliman chose to fight Taylor instead.

The loser of Soliman vs. Taylor will have a very tough time getting a fight on the level of Golovkin on HBO ever again. Of course if Taylor is the winner, he'll also have to solve his legal issues before he can even consider another big fight.

Gennady Golovkin vs. Marco Antonio Rubio

Mike Stobe/Getty Images

What's At Stake: Gennady Golovkin's middleweight title and his status as one of the most feared boxers in the sport

Perhaps bigger than the belt, Golovkin will defend against Marco Antonio Rubio on October 18 his status as a major draw and one of the best fighters in all of boxing. Despite all he's accomplished, Golovkin has struggled to land a match with a top star as those boxers have weighed out the risk/reward in fighting him.

Golovkin brings in money and TV ratings, but it's not enough to make it worth it for guys, such as Miguel Cotto or Canelo Alvarez, to risk a loss before they have their own eventual big match likely next year. While Golovkin keeps chasing that big fight, he'll need to remain undefeated to stay in contention.

With a loss to Rubio, Golovkin would likely lose some of his earning powers but still pose the same physical threat to other stars making it that much less likely for them to get in the ring with him.

The only way for him to land a fight against guys such as Cotto, Alvarez or Andre Ward is for the fight to be so big financially that they can't pass it up. The only way fighting Golovkin becomes that big financially is for him to keep winning, to keep knocking people out and to keep winning over fans with his personality and style.

Golovkin is still fighting quality opponents—along with Rubio both Daniel Geale and Matthew Macklin were top-10 middleweights when he knocked them out—but a loss to Rubio wouldn't be as forgivable as losses are for boxers who come up short against Mayweather or Pacquiao obviously.

Rubio is a tough fighter, but he's not a big name, so a loss would be very damaging to the momentum Golovkin has built up over the last two years.

Bernard Hopkins vs. Sergey Kovalev

TIM LARSEN/Associated Press

What's At Stake: Really need me to tell you that?; three light heavyweight belts and the status as the best fighter in the division

Adonis Stevenson may be the lineal champion, but I think most fans will consider the winner of Sergey Kovalev vs. Bernard Hopkins the best fighter at 175 pounds both because of how Stevenson has run from big fights and how these two men have run toward arguably the biggest match of the year.

It's a very intriguing matchup of unbelievable power up versus a crafty veteran who practices sound defense and knows every trick in the book and who also doesn't mind breaking a few rules every now and then of course.

The winner of this match will control the division and should have all the bargaining power in his corner whenever Stevenson decides to take off his dress and fight one of them. There will be more than a few belts up for grabs come early November, and money and power will also be on the line.

A victory over the other fighter would also be a huge punctuation mark for Hopkins' Hall of Fame career, while it would give tremendous credibility to Kovalev's resume since he hasn't fought anyone close to Hopkins' level.

This fight could make a legacy.

Hopkins is already a Hall of Famer, but to defeat arguably the most feared puncher in the sport, at his age and to unify three belts at light heavyweight, would put him in the conversation for the all-time top 10 pound-for-pound list.

For Kovalev what bigger feather is there to put in his cap than a win over a future Hall of Famer? That's easy; there isn't one. This is the biggest fight of his career so far and likely his entire career. This fight will play a major role in defining his legacy and how he's remembered after he eventually retires.

The stakes couldn't be much higher.

Follow me on Twitter for more boxing opinion and live scoring of big fights: @sackedbybmac