Liston was unique in that he only made 1 title defense, but as a contender, wiped out a whole division and thus is still considered an ATG.
So true, the thing was the public disapproved of him getting a title shot because of his bad reputation and crime filled background. Even the NAACP didnt want him to have a title shot cause they wanted a gentleman like Floyd Patterson to remain champ and not a black man like Liston. Floyd eventually went against the wishes of the public and his trainer Cus D’ Amato and fought Liston.
People overrate Liston and Tyson's intimidation factor. There were a lot of guys that would have straightened them out.
Unfortunately the boxing community never got a Liston Frazier fight. That really would have been something even though Liston was older.
I don't like Ali at all, but I think he was actually the greatest intimidator. He was not afraid to yell at the top of his lungs. This unnerved most fighters, because the average boxer isn't usually very verbally skilled or confident. And Ali got opponents to doubt themselves.
