Ali vs Banks. What a sell out.

I saw it, otherwise I wouldn´t talk. I only give my opinion when I now what I´m talking about (not like you)...

 

I have the fight in my collection. I've seen it tons of times. Believe me, I know what I'm rtalking about.

 

Yeah, but you have the Ali- glasses on and you´re like on LSD, totally not responsible for one´s action when it comes to Ali, so you don´t count...

 

OK, Dempsey held for a few seconds, but Clay held for no seconds!:good

 

I count more than you, since you seem to have the Ali-hater glasses on.

 

I´m realistic and neutral, two things you don´t have... that isn´t a hater, you confound something again...

 

I'm neutral, too. It's not like I said he wasn't hurt against Copper or something. Both men threw left hooks, and Banks' hook got there first. Clay went down and was up right away, bouncing up and down, eyes clear and everything. I don't think he was in trouble, and I'm being as unbiased as I can.

 

Well, anyway Firpo didn't really hit him. Dempsey got pushed out of the ring and he hit his head on a typewriter. That's how he got hurt.

 

But why do you call me a hater? Did you ever read something absurd I said about Ali? I give only my opinions, in this cases here I also didn´t say he was almost KTFO or something like that...

 

Oh, dear God, what a hideously bitter irony:shock:!

There is simply no way I can be the only one on ESB to pick up on this! The referee who was criticized for stopping Clay/Banks prematurely was Ruby Goldstein! My friends, this match took place on February 10, 1962, in Madison Square Garden. The very next month, on March 24, at the very same venue, Ruby Goldstein came under fire for freezing in round 12 of the Griffith/Paret III tragedy.

If Goldstein had the same mindset for Griffith/Paret III that he had for Clay/Banks, Benny might have survived:-(.

A further disturbing item concerning Goldstein's decision to spare Banks any more punishment involves the fact that barely three years later, Banks would become one of the last heavyweights to die of injuries sustained in a boxing ring, at the hands of Leotis Martin.

Horrible coincidences.:verysad


Ominous parallels aside, as Don Dunphy characterized both scored knockdowns as merely being of the flash variety from his ringside position, I'd be inclined to go along with his experienced assessment on that opinion.

From how it appeared to me, the best punch of the fight landed by Banks was the first punch he delivered after getting up from his referee ruled slip, also a left hook which really did seem to rattle young Clay.

Beyond that, I was really impressed with how good Clay's hook was at that early stage of his career. I was under the impression that he didn't really possess significant mastery of the hook until after he won the title from Liston, yet that is the final punch in the combination which floored Banks. It wasn't the only superb hook he delivered in that match.

Until just now, all I'd seen of Clay/Banks was that historic knockdown, and the fourth round conclusion. It was fascinating to finally view it in it's entirety. (And chillingly ominous, given the knowledge of what would come to pass.)

 

Ali showed his true mettle early in his career with this fight.Banks did catch him nice, though.

 

An early fight in which the young Cassius Clay came out of it a better fighter.

 

The fight was stopped because the ringside doctor had taken a long look at Banks inbetween rounds due to the punishment he'd taken in the third. He told the referee to stop it if Banks was still wobbly when he came out for the fourth, which he was.