Ali vs Foreman rematch in the fall of 1977: who would have won?

I was 19 at the time of Zaire. How time flies,eh ?

 

Where you alive and going to fights back then? Nobody wanted wanted Frazier 3. It was considered a mismatch. Ever wonder why the Ellis #2 bout is seldom discussed and was joe's form going into the manilla bout? Ever see it? Back then it was not shown. You read about it and just what is a 75 version of Ellis doing lasting until the 11th anyway? You think for a nanosecond after seeing that version of Joe that dundee does not want his prize pupil in with the guy?

Everyone thought Norton was a style problem for Muhammad. They wanted to see Muhammad rematch the guy that destroyed Kenny 2 years earlier in a title opportunity. And nobody was picking norton to defeat Foreman if they had a rematch. Nobody.

The rest of the guys were title challengers because of poor recent form. Lyle against Quarry. Bugner #2. Wepner. And why is that guy making it to the 15th? Foreman got rid of him early when he was a novice and Chuck wasn't exactly beating a who's who to get a shot.

Lubbers? Evangelista? Jimmy Young came out of nowhere and they had a tough time selling the fight. Why do you think it landed in that mecca of boxing--Landover?

If they thought for a nanosecond Foreman was somehow owned and would fall to Ali every time, don't you think Herbert Muhammad signs for the fight for considerably more than the $5 million they got in 74?

If he's that easy of a fight, all the more reason to fight the guy. He was the best payday out there, by far.

But we never got it.

 

Good point about George not being vocal. His inertia through 1975 spoke volumes

 

Yeah. me too. I lost 4 figures on the fight and I was 18. Lost a car and had to walk. But it sure did teach a lesson on evaluating fighters. Specifically, never give Ali at 3-1. How stupid was that?

But that's how many of us thought George was going to pulverize him in a few rounds.

But will we ever see an opponent list like George's in the heavies ever again? Man, that one stretch of his is very difficult to come out of w/o an L somewhere somewayN

Frazier 1. Softie defense against a guy ranked in the lower top 10. brutal ko as well. then Norton. And lots of folks liked Kenny to pull an upset for some reason.

Then a guy by the name of Ali. In recent times, we would have seen a Bugner type guy instead. Or a Quarry. Mac Foster maybe. And milk that title.

Then George fought Lyle, coming off a bad loss. Usually you never see a hitter as a comeback opponent. Slicksters and hitters are out. Facefirst guys are the selected opponent.

And the foreman camp should have gone that route. But they were not in a good position. They had to fight a guy that was ahead of Muhammad at the time of the stoppage. And try and get public sentiment to get the Ali rematch.

Then, He fights Frazier again..

Or, look at Lyle. Young #1, then Ali, if memory serves. Then Foreman. Shavers.

That's quite a few risky fights to take. Let alone not getting Herbert Muhammad to sign a rematch clause to even get them a title shot in the first place.

 

zadfrak, I sadly have to admit that what you're saying is true. IMO Ali was (or could have been without the exile) THE greatest HW of all time. But...his second reign behavior paved the way for a lot of BS that followed. I know fellow Ali fans, but the truth hurts. His second reign started splintering the titles which has, in no small way, led to the mess we're in today.

 

Joe Louis had NO one else to fight. Who did he duck?
Radamacher? He was a career amatuer, 29 yrs. old, 7 yrs. older than Floyd, and 20-25 lbs. heavier than Floyd. With a Gold Medal. Times were different then. And Patterson made it a one-sided mismatch.
Ali hurt Joe bad in the FOTC. He did 'puss' out. But we're talking Ali's smoke and mirrors after Foreman, not Joe.

 

Have you not heard of a buy called Mike Tyson who unified the belts again?

who was it who fractured the belts afterwards....wqs it not George Foreman who dropped the IBf title for Schulz and Moorer and the WBA title for Seldon and Tucker?

The titles were splintered and unified numerous times, long after Ali had retired

 

My point exactly which is why the crap UFC (is that it?, I dont' give a rat's ass) is more popular than boxing as we speak?
5 champs in each division? Another 'champ' every 4-5 pounds?
40-45 top ten 'contenders' for every ruling body?
Outside of the occasional Big fight, **** on pro boxing! I'll take my 80-100 hours of DVD and VHS classic stuff from 1925-1985.
It DID start, in it's infancy, in the late 70's.

 

Its a huge misconception because Louis DID fight everyone, but yet people still accuse him of fighting bums. When in fact there was nobody left for him to fight in his prime. Plus hes not the only HW champ to be accused of this. So I agree with you, WHO DID HE DUCK? :good

 

Foreman wins any and all rematches. It was a miracle Ali pulled it off the first time. All Foreman needs to do is remember to pace himself and not gas. Ali was just a shadow of himself by that time.

 

Yes,in 1977 Ali was a shadow of the fighter that he was three years earlier when he regained the title from George in Zaire but he was still a master of psychological warfare. Foreman,in the post 1975 period would be an easy target for it.

Still a 50/50 bout after 1976. Before then Ali would always have won a rematch.

 

i agree with your point with the multiple organizations and belts and junior super weigtclasses. The whole sport is crooked and always will be unfortunately.

actually it was Leon Spinks who started the fracture, he fought Ali in a rematch instead of giving Norton the title shot

 

Foreman was plenty vocal. He called out Ali many times. I remember him doing so on Wide World of Sports, and he was on the cover of Sports Illustrated for the same reason. The whole reason he fought five guys in one night was to prove he had stamina. There was never any reasonable excuse for Ali to not fight Foreman again, plain and simple. George got ripped off, but so did all of us fans who, nearly forty years later, are still wondering what would have happened.