So about Ali vs Norton 3

Ali didn't do enough to win for me, Ali's defense I think is severely underrated but his third performance against Norton he was not nearly as motivated as the second encounter and had aged further.

 

Not a robbery a very close fight with many swing rounds, I had it 8-7 for Norton but it could of gone either way. I think people often mistake "controversial" with "robbery". A robbery for me is Lewis vs Holyfield 1, where theres no possible way Holyfield could of earned a draw. Where as a fight like Norton vs Ali 3 had many close rounds, and majority of the people who had Norton winning still have it very close.

 

Norton clearly won for me, watch Ali's body language at the final bell. He knew Norton had beat him

 

When I watched the fight when I was still a teenager I had it 8-7 Ali.Years later I had it 10-5 for Norton.I’ve watched Leonard Hagler a few times.First time I had it even,Next time Leonard by two,third time Hagler by two,before coming to the conclusion that a draw would’ve been the correct result after that fight.Those fights are an example of what a difficult job boxing judges have.
Realistically I think it is hard to take the The third Ali fight away from Norton.The poor guy was absolutely devastated after the decision was announced,crying into a towel uncontrollably.
You would miss those days when fights were more exciting and the best fought the best compared to the crap we get these days.

 

I agree that Norton was unlucky not to win, I myself had Norton winning. And I think overall more people had Norton winning the fight, but I still don't think it was a robbery. Last time I watched it I noted there was atleast 5 swing rounds, so depending on who you think won the swing rounds. You could come up with many different scorecards. But it's definitely one of the most hotly debated decisions in history.

I think only the 2nd fight was when both men were near the best, well for Ali definitely he was at his most sharp for the 70s, regarding his movement and sharpness.

 

Well you should never base your scoring on a highlight, because the highlight could be biased towards a certain fighter. Norton landed the harder punches in the fight, but in some of the rounds it was only 1 or 2 stand out punches from Norton. Where as Ali was consistent with his jab, so it just comes down to your criteria of what you like when scoring a fight. Like I said I had Norton winning the fight 8-7, but there was plenty of swing rounds where a win for Ali was definitely not out of the question. A controversial fight ? Yes. A robbery ? No not for me too close of a fight to be called a robbery.

 

After the third fight in 1976..one of the NY papers said..."If Ali won that fight last night...then the Japanese won WWII". Ali...at this stage...was "winning" fights not because of what he was going in the ring...but because of who he was.

 

I'm going to rewatch and score it right now cause I am interesting if I will find that I still feel Norton won. I agree with most posters in that the fight is really contentious, and I love Ali as a humanitarian and fighter as much as anyone else.

 

Watch it with the sound off.

 

I was there and watched it live. Boring fight. Ali won. Clear as day . not close.