Ali's comments after the third Norton fight

With the internet the entire history of boxing is at your fingertips. Unfortunately no amount of study will match the knowledge of those really close to the game during specific time periods. Most details are lost over time.

 

Wait...Ali landed nothing in the 15th? He was moving and throwing jabs short but at the end of the round Norton connects with several good shots that had Ali holding on.
How was that an Ali round?

 

Ali worked for 2.5 minutes of that round while Norton did nothing but lay back. Norton was told not to take any chances and he didn’t. You generally lose rounds in professional boxing by doing nothing for 90% of the round. Guess what? Each official gave Ali that round including the most highly respected ref in boxing history Mercante. Really if you look at round 15 objectively there is no case that can be made
where Norton wins it.

 

Looking at it objectivley Norton was stalking Ali trying to fight. Ali was staying away. There wasn't anything landed by either guy during those 2.5 min of the round yet somehow you come with that being in favor of Ali? Again your giving Ali credit for "working" when in reality he was just trying to survive. Then Norton beats the hell out of him the last 30 seconds. It was criminal to give that fight to Ali based on that that logic.
Norton won the round. The judges who are in question gave it to Ali? Yea that is the whole point of the discussion. There was bias in favor of Ali at that stage of his career.
One of the New York newspapers had a headline about a Robbery and all they were lacking was a gun.
I don't hate Ali but Kenny deserved the title that night. I don't like that kind of injustice.
It wasn't really a close fight.

 

No you are once again completely wrong.

Ali did land punches those 2.5 minutes. Norton purposefully did nothing but lay back following his corners instructions. Ali was outboxing Norton or at least that was the appearance.

This was 1976. Everyone realized that winning the hwt championship via decision was very difficult no matter who was the champion. Norton and his corner knew this yet he/they chose to give away round 15. No matter how you look at it a very dumb idea.

Norton should have let it all hang out in that last round WORKING HARD to impress the judges but instead he coasted. Norton had no one to blame but himself and his corner. Worst decision by any corner, any fighter, in hwt boxing history.

 

Regarding NY newspapers. These were notoriously anti Ali. Both leading NY sportswriters HATED Ali.

 

30 seconds (barring no KD of course) doesn't over ride 2.5 minutes of inactivity. Norton even admitted he lost this round. Tbh I don't see how anyone can score this round for Norton.

 

Very true. I was a Norton fan in 76 and as this round progressed I stood there at Yankee Stadium thinking to myself he was blowing it.

 

"And the fact remains that in a close fight, every round is precious. Prior to the final stanza, Norton’s corner made the fatal error of telling their man the decision was in the bag and instructing him to play it safe for the last three minutes to make sure the crafty champion didn’t somehow get lucky. By contrast, Ali fought round fifteen like his life depended on it, summoning the strength and energy to dominate its first two minutes and thereby save his title by the slimmest of margins. "

https://www.thefightcity.com/ali-vs...azier-george-foreman-yankee-stadium-new-york/

 

I didn't know his corner had said that but for sure there was some reason Norton only threw about three punches in the first two and a half minutes, I always thought it was over confidence in where the scoring was on his part alone.

 

It was overconfidence. His corner thought he was ahead enough so he could coast through the 15th round so as to not take the chance of getting hit with a damaging blow. Such an error!!! I am sure this decision haunted Norton for years. He should have fired his entire corner immediately after the fight. Norton was fresh there was no reason to let Ali take the round especially knowing the unlikelihood of winning the hwt championship by decision circa 1976.

 

Agreed. He should've known it was a close fight, and throughout the history of the title, the champion would always get the benefit of the doubt in a close fight.

 

Still love at the end of the 15th, Kenny is yelling at him. And continues to yell--and Ali looks at the canvas and trudges back to his corner.

 

Famous quote - and utterly dumb. The Ali v Norton rubber match was a closely-contested fight. I don't rate Mercante as a referee. (Looked the part all right but he was indecisive - panicky even - when things really heated up. He lost control of the first Foreman v Frazier fight and ought to have stopped it before that sixth knockdown.) I think he scored fights well, though - and he gave the Yankee Stadium fight to Ali. So - was Mercante corrupt or an inept scorer? Neither, in my my opinion. He got it right.