50 years ago today - anybody else remember this fight?

Are they high? I was looking at other fights, for instance Mayweather-Pacquiao, two much smaller men, and the punch count was almost fiffy percent lower.

 

It's also the way punches were thrown there have been fights with more punches thrown but they didn't look as brutal as this as well as the movements.

 

Ali had to keep throwing to keep Joe off him.

 

Joe Frazier like

 

Pac and Mayweather are a lot more skilled then Ali and Frazier is why it might be why the punch count is lower… Joe Frazier being so dog aggressive is also part of that equation.

 

I was living and breathing in ‘75 but I don’t remember the fight. Too young.

 

I truly believe Ali was “out” for a micro period in round 10, I think it was.

Ali was covered up on the ropes while Joe was ripping brutal hooks into him. With each punch, the spectators reacted audibly.

Ali literally appeared lifeless on the ropes and slumped that little bit more again upon one particularly powerful left hook.

But of course, Ali came “alive” again shortly thereafter, as he so often did and punched his way off the ropes.

Ali did same so often in fights that I think there were quite a few times when he was actually badly hurt, even “out” on his feet - but it went by undetected.

How Joe did not fall before the stoppage I will never know. He stuttered badly in round 14 but nope, Joe was NEVER going to give Ali, of all people, that satisfaction.

What a man Joe Frazier was.

 

With the humidity in the Philippines, I believe the temperature number I’ve seen for inside the ring was 115 degrees.

I don’t think Chisora ever fought in conditions like that.

 

Going in, it was considered a mismatch and a soft defense for Ali. Nobody was picking Frazier. Nobody. Joe had not looked good in a bout going back to the Foreman massacre & the thinking was he was grabbing a payday.

But he sure did rise to the occasion.