Interesting article: 2007 Former world heavyweight boxing champion Joe Frazier does not believe George Foremans claim that he was doped during his 1974 Rumble in the Jungle fight against Muhammad Ali. New York, June 4 : Former world heavyweight boxing champion Joe Frazier does not believe George Foreman's claim that he was doped during his 1974 'Rumble in the Jungle' fight against Muhammad Ali. Smokin' Joe insisted that the game was 'fair' and Ali deserved to win that night. "I think Ali won fair and square. The better man won that night," New York Post quoted Frazier, as saying. Earlier, Foreman wrote in his memoir, 'God in My Corner' that during the match his trainer gave his some water which tasted like medicine, that made him go weaker by the third round and ultimately he was knocked out in the eight round. "I climbed into the ring with that medicinal taste still lingering in my mouth . . . After the third round, I was as tired as if I had fought 15 rounds. What's going on here? Did someone slip a drug in my water?" Foreman wrote. This content is protected
Foreman's a strange guy. He switches positions on the Ali fight constantly. He used to say that Ali won fair and square and that he only lost because Ali gave him a taste of his big right hand. He used to say that he was making up excuses after the loss to Ali to protect his ego; that he didn't know how to lose...Then he comes out with all the drugged water B.S. He definitely has a wacky way about him.
Frazier is right.... George is very bitter about the beating he recieved in 1974 tho he pretends that he isnt. I remember seeing Foreman on a talk show over here (Britain) a while back & he was asked who the greatest HWT of all time was... he said Joe Louis (nothing wrong with that) but then spouted this **** about nobody even being 2nd to Joe Louis after he was asked about Ali`s ranking, saying Louis was without question the best ever HWT & everyone else is a distant 2nd. Of course, this could actually be his honest opinion but I myself doubt it.
Of course he won fair and square. I've never thought otherwise and if someone differs from that view, then I'd like to know why. I like George, but crikey sometimes he sprouts some of the worst nonsense I've ever heard.
"Riddick Bowe has to be one of the bravest heavyweights I've ever seen... Second only to Muhammad Ali." Tosh.
Or saying that Mike White has what it takes to be heavyweight champion... Well, bless 'im, George can be a little variable at times. You just need to sieve through what he says and pick out the good bits, because they are good.
I think George might actually believe there was something funny in his water- as I, and probably a lot of you, know firsthand, people do tend to rationalize when something big like that goes poorly for them. I don't believe George actually was poisoned, but it may be something he has genuinely convinced himself of. I say credit to Joe, by the way, for being fair and not understandably jumping on a chance to discredit Ali.
Now I get the mental image of Ali rushing into Foreman's locker room and beating him with a rope before the bout as well...
Foreman said, "I was as tired as if I had fought 15 rounds." Maybe Foreman was so tired after the third round because he threw so many meaningless punches to Ali's gloves and elbows, all while taking a few occasional stiff straights to the chops as well. Besides, in his entire career, Foreman NEVER fought a match that went 15 rounds. So wtf is he talking about? He wouldn't know 15 rounds from 3 rounds of swinging wildly at air and leather. I've heard Foreman try to blame his corner for not telling him to get up after the knockdown (lol "Why didn't yall TELL me to get up?") and I have heard the medicine taste in the water excuse... why doesn't George just admit that he threw the fight?lol Rumor has it that Don King actually invented the George Foreman grill and that the rights to it was the payoff for Foreman's dive against Ali!
Everything went wrong for George in that fight. He had spent 8 months trying to get Ali to fight him by calling Ali up on the phone a lot. Then they schedule the fight over in Africa instead of in George's backyard of Houston. Then he is in shape for the fight in September and cuts his eye in sparring and the fight is pushed back 30 days. During that 30 day period Ali had gotten the entire country turned against Foreman. When a full stadium / country is yelling "Ali, kill'em", it is not a real good situation to be walking into.
I like when George is in the mood where he admits that he lost. He said something on ESPN like "You know the rope-a-dope? I was the dope." "He was saying, 'Is that all you got, George?' and I was thinking 'Yeah, that's pretty much it.'" He comes off as much more mature when he admits that he lost.
