Foreman vs Ali. The key fight for your top ten? I think so. Both men got the better of Frazier, so it comes down to this. Foreman was 40-0 at the time. If Foreman had beaten Ali anyones top ten is shuffled. Suppose Foreman won, kept his mental resolve, and retired at 45-0? Who's #1. And how far does Ali slide?
Good question. Foreman would be challenging for top two position while Muhammad may have still made it into the top 5 - Based a lot on his sixties output.
Joe Louis would likely have been #1 in most people's eyes. Foreman would probably be top 3.. Foreman was already heavily favored to beat Ali on the pretense that Muhammad was washed up in most people's eyes. The victory would have given him points, but the previous mentioned factor would have limited his rating.
I don't think Foreman would have retired undefeated. He would have gotten exposed at some point, probably by someone like Jimmy Young (like in real life), or Larry Holmes.
Agreed. The money would have been too attractive to pass up, and at some point he would lost focus as he actually did and run into someone who could take advantage of it.
Not really. If Jeffries beats Johnson, he's #1. That's a huge change. Suppose Liston beat Ali. Suppose Louis beat Marciano. etc etc. There are a few fights like that. But yeah, retiring 45-0 is a colossal achievement and obviously if you take any fighter and turn his record into "45-0" you get a very highly ranked fighter. Oscar would be the GOAT ffs.
That's like saying if Ali beat Holmes and retired, no one's catching him! Jeffries barely missed on a lights out hook at the end of one of the early rounds by inches. Had it connected, things could have changed.
Also true. But I mean the original suggestion is hardly in touch with reality. If you can award Foreman a win over Ali and a 45-0 record I don't see why we have to maintain some semblance of reality.
Some felt the venue was a reason why Foreman lost. In Africa, with the outdoor heat, and nation in Ali's corner. Then were loose ropes. Foreman was hated in Zaire by the locals. Had this fight been in the USA, I think its different. Foreman doesn't gas as quickly and would have better focus.
Yes. I read that the lack of bounce of the ring favored Foreman, & the referee wondered why Ali would agfree to fight Ali in a "phone booth". The one significant advantage Ali had was getting away with holding & pulling Foreman's head down.