Have champions ever gotten such nicknames among boxing fans (I don't remember that), or is it just a new normality?
Muhammad Ali loved giving Nicknames. Called George Foreman the Mummy Patterson was called the Rabbit.
Liston was the big ugly bear. And for Joe Frazier, the great icon of race relations called "the gorilla."
He also called George Chuvalo The "Washer-Woman" & Earnie Shavers The "Acorn". Ali was the master at giving nicknames. He makes Fury look like an amateur.
Not those specific nicknames, but nicknames in general are nothing new. Haye called Wlad Borat, Shavers was the Acorn (ATG nickname), Riddick Bowe was Chewbacca etc.
Not sure, both are pretty mediocre trash talkers when it comes down to it or I guess pretty good because it's about as good as it gets in boxing. Ali had everyone gawking in wonder at his childish poetry so the standard is pretty low. Also Ali couldn't take any stick himself, his ego really couldn't allow for him to be insulted without him getting pissy about it. I'd say he loses not by being the worse trash talker but by being the worse recipient of it.
Precisely. Both Frazier and Foreman were not used to being mocked and they played into Ali's hands. Fury is utterly shameless. He is on camera talking about Joshua's c*ck and how he wished he had it instead.
First of all, Ali wasn't bothered by Bonavena's trash talking - he was playing along & having fun with it, as it was the first time someone talked back/engaged with him & the fact that he didn't have to promote the fight by himself. Fury hasn't faced anyone who's good at trash talking, so we don't know how good he'll react when someone does.
Don't know about that. Ali could handle stick from his opponent's (such as Bonavena) & not let it affect him. Fury hasn't faced anyone who's a good trash-talker & can get under his skin, so we don't know how he'll handle it.
That's the main difference between the two, humility. Ali called himself the greatest and truly believed it, taking it as an insult to challenge that notion. Fury called himself the greatest and points out how he is the greatest despite being a fat gypsy because he's very self-aware and self-parodic. I believe it's better to have the latter mindset as a champion, humility never goes amiss.