Greg Page's best showing

too fat

 

I thought it was Snowall

 

Slim Jim Robinson was training him at the 4 fight mark when he went to Ali's training camp for the Holmes fight at Deer Lake. He was still training him for Holmes and i'm sure he was still training him when he won the title. Pretty sure Slim laid all the foundations.

Incidentally Tim tells a story about overhearing everyone arguing whether Ali should fight on the day of the Holmes fight.

Witherspoon added: “When I started sparring with him, I was expecting him to put a whipping on all the sparring partners – not like he wanted to hurt us – but let us know he’s the champ and stuff like that.

“But during the camp I was sensing something’s wrong. I had an intelligent trainer, ‘Slim’ Jim Robinson, who was always into everybody’s business.

“And he would say to me, ‘Tim, something’s wrong, Ali can’t put out, something’s wrong with him, I don’t know what it is.’

“So when we went to Vegas [for the fight], the sparring partners, the trainers and various other people were in the Dunes Hotel and Muhammad Ali was in Caesars Palace.

“I was young, I was tired, I just wanted to go home. All the lights and cameras, I wasn’t used to that.

“So I went over to Caesars Palace to try to get my ticket to get out of Vegas. Soon as the fight was over, I wanted to get out.

“I’m walking down the hall and I heard them and they’re arguing. I went, ‘Woah, somebody’s fighting.’

“I heard them saying, ‘Oh, he shouldn’t be fighting, he’s sick.’

“Ali was sitting on the bed, Angelo Dundee was beside him, my trainer was staring at him, Drew Bundini, there was other people in there.

“And they were arguing about whether he should fight or not.

“And I stopped, I said, ‘Oh my goodness, Ali might not fight.’

“So I stood there for like another three or four minutes and they were arguing, ‘No, he shouldn’t fight, he’s dehydrated, this and that.’

“But the fight did go on. After the first round, I knew that he wasn’t gonna win.

“He was sick when he fought Holmes. When Holmes jumped on him, I said, ‘Wow, something’s really wrong with him.’

“He was sick, he should’ve never fought.”

 

Excellent story JT. I knows it’s unlikely but one of Ali’s early career opponents was named Jim Robinson and he was the only other opponent knocked out by Ali in the first. Any chance they’re one and the same?

 

I am disappointed! The man sparred Liston!!! You are thinking of "Sweet" Jim Robinson.

Also trained Eddie Mustafa and Zoomah for some time.

https://boxrec.com/en/box-pro/009365

 

Marty Monroe, then Larry Alexander, if you are considering top competition. Ira Martin was a fight of thing to possibly come.