Floyd Patterson 'The Clay - Liston Rematch, Was A Hoax'

Floyd Patterson,

November 23, 1965

After just going 12 Rounds with Cassius Clay in Las Vegas, and nursing
a 'bad back', the former two-time Heavyweight Champion and now #1
Heavyweight reflected on the Cassius Clay - Sonny Liston rematch in
Lewiston, Maine.

'There is no way, that Cassius could have knocked Sonny out with that
one-punch. Cassius just doesn't punch that hard. I took his best punches
full force, and with a bad back. They did sting, but they didn't hurt.'

'Not once, was I hurt from the force of a single-punch. Eleven and half
rounds, and I never was dazed or staggered. For Sonny to fall from that
single-punch, it had to a 'hoax', a trick that was played upon the public.'

 

Dan Florio (Floyd Patterson's Trainer)

We had prepared Floyd, by putting him in the ring with 'big punchers',
like Jimmy 'King' Fletcher.

Jimmy dropped Floyd a few times, and I was worried that Clay might
put Floyd away in 'One Round'.

So, I told Floyd to brace himself when he got into the ring with Clay,
so he could absorb the right hand punches better.

But Floyd came back after each round, and said Clay had no power,
and his punches were nowhere near as hard as Jimmy Fletcher's.

That's when I knew, the Clay - Liston fight was a 'hoax'.

Here, Floyd takes a 'harder right hand' than Sonny Liston took, and
Floyd was still standing.


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Yes, I agree.

Especially when Muhammad Ali wouldn't call Larry Holmes....'Big Jack'.

 

Dan Florio,

We were watching Floyd get hit by Cassius's 'Sunday Punches', and we
were waiting for him to fall.

He was still standing, after 6-Rounds.

In Round 7,

I looked over at Gino, and he just looked at me with the look that,
'Either Floyd just grew a 'granite chin', or Clay was nothing more than
a fast-handed fighter, with no punch.'

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And just because a 'bigger and stronger' Cassius Clay was hitting
Floyd with Sunday Punches while moving 'forward' and not be able
to stop the 190 lb. weak-chinned former Champion - doesn't mean
he couldn't knock out Sonny Liston with one punch,,,while skipping
side-ways.

Free Tickets for Muhammad Ali vs. Antonio Inoki are still available.