Anyone here predict an Ali victory over Holmes?

True. The sentiment thing is big. Something like 5 (out of 6 that picked) of the staff at Ring had Floyd to beat Ali in 1965 too.

 

"Ali's got it up here!", said a young lad tapping his head in a darkened Chicago theater prior to the closed-circuit transmission that night. "Holmes is gonna be down there!"

Before Ali entered the ring, there was a surge of hope because if Ali, the giant slayer, who so amazingly overcame Liston and Foreman against all odds, was saying the mosquito would pull the plow, it would be foolhardy to totally write him off, no matter the evidence.

He had already pulled off a first sign in trimming down to near-prime fighting weight.

But as soon as he entered the ring, it seemed clear he was not all there. Slow, somber and lacking the brilliant aura of flash and supreme confidence of pre-bout Zaire, and against a truly great fighter, the TKO loss was clearly in the cards.

 

I wasn't born yet when this fight took place. lol. But a lot of people figured Ali would win because his body looked so fit at the time. They figured he'd pull out another one of his legendary Muhammad Ali wins. But he was obviously over the hill by this point.

 

I seem to remember Sports Illustrated picking Ali. I was 13 at the time. I don't remember being positive about a pick - I was rooting for Holmes but thought Ali might pull it off.

It's strange to think about now, but Ali, in the eyes of most people, was given a better chance against Holmes than Holyfield was against Tyson in '96.

 

I went to watch it on Closed Circuit TV,I didnt think he would win ,nor did I expect the debacle it became,the saddest night in boxing for me.