Joe Frazier's Funeral

Really?

 

Really and truly

 

There should of been more media coverage of this event, people should of been able to watch it.

Just like people where aloud to watch Princess Diana's wedding.

Joe Frazier was a "WORLD" Champion...."WORLD"...!

 

His greatest rivals and peers came together to show respect for a true great.

Epic. I thought about flying out, but couldn't swing it. I'd have cried like a baby, anyhow. I'm glad it did the man justice.

P.S.

Joe didn't cause Ali's condition. He beat Ali's ass in the most important of their three fights and was insanely competitive in the two he wound up losing. Thats the only victory we need to give him; I feel crediting him with an illness that likely existed in Muhammad before the two fought is a bit mean spirited in nature.

 

Was Jesse Jackson an amateur boxer???

 

How did Ali react at the funeral? Did he seemed moved at all?

 

I don't know.

 

Good descriptions of the funeral service for those of us who could not attend. It sounds like the service will really help Joe Frazier's loved ones cope with their loss.

Some years ago I saw a George Foreman interview on TV. At one point Foreman briefly discussed Ali's Parkinson's condition. George suggested that Ali's mercurial behavior indicated that something was wrong with him that may have been an early but less obvious phase of Parkinson's, long before Ali had been on the receiving end of too many damaging punches.

Much of Ali's rollercoaster pesonality was an intentional part of his public act to get publicity and sell tickets, but Foreman said the young Ali was often the same way in private.

 

I'm glad Frazier got the funeral he deserved. It hurts me to see Ali these days though.. definitely the dark side of boxing.

 

Glad to hear he got the send off he deserved.

 

head trauma does not directly cause parkinson's but it significantly increases the risk.

 

Respect!

 

They don't even know what causes it, let alone what factors are a risk increase.....

I took this from WebMD, a reputable site.

"Why Parkinson's disease occurs and how the neurons become impaired is not known. However, there is increasing evidence that Parkinson's disease may be inherited (passed on genetically from family members)."

 

Actually, I'm wondering if this would be Joe's interpretation of it. (Look, do you really believe he ever truly forgave Muhammad in his heart of hearts for going over the top in the treatment of Smoke? (Maybe in a last moment hospice conversion.) Late in life, some kid excitedly asked him, "Hey, did you ever fight Muhammad Ali?" One can just imagine the visceral effect this must have had on Frazier.) Joe's reaction to Ali's worsening condition seemed a peculiarly alternating combination of gloating and pity. (At least they made a show of trying to bury the hatchet, unlike Giardello and Fullmer, who my father said were still pissed off at each other during the 1998 IBHOF induction weekend.)

I've stated numerous times that I believe it was Shavers more than anybody else who screwed the GOAT up neurologically of anybody in competition. I never saw anybody stand up to the number of right hand head shots from Earnie that Muhammad did, including Tiger Williams (who was mainly pummeled with rights to the body). Ali never looked right in competition after Shavers.

A lot of people are angry for Smoke getting short shrift, and have expressed their anger with Muhammad's treatment of him frequently since Joe's final illness was announced (and plenty before that).

 

He's fond of pointing out that Janet Reno and Michael J. Fox didn't box. He doesn't seem to have any cognitive impairments like Jerry Quarry, mainly reduced motor function. But to what extent is this hereditary, and to what degree is there evidence of Parkinson's Syndrome in his well documented family history?

Certainly, the punishment he needlessly took in sparring and competition did him no favors.

Surviving members of the Quarry family have expressed a belief that there may be a genetic predisposition to sustaining such damage in certain boxers. Given this, it may be a good thing that O'Halloran retired Rahman Ali after just 18 fights, and that daughter Laila is out of the sport.