IF Henry Cooper knocked out Muhammad Ali in 1963, just how would have the Heavyweight picture changed. Would Sonny Liston go on a roll through 1964, 1965 and 1966. Would or could have, Liston put together 5 or 6 more title defenses. Would Ali have fallen down the Heavyweight ladder, and been dropped into the lower-tier. Would Henry Cooper shoot for a title fight in the United Kingdom first, in late 63' or early 64', before offering Ali a re-match later in late 64' or early 65'. Would Henry Cooper have any shot at all versus Sonny Liston. Would Cassius Clay had changed his name, to Muhammad Ali. If Ol 'Enry's punch landed just 20-seconds earlier, imagine how everything would be so much different.
if cooper ever knocked out ali the fbi would launch an investigation into fight fixing and shut the sport down completely cooper had zero chance of winning:think
Whoa there MISTER, Cassius Clay was eating a left hook their in the U.K. back in 1963, at the end of the 4th round. That didn't need an FBI investigation, the Bobby's in the U.K. could have handled that.
I wasn't a bookie at that time, but I'd be willing to bet the odds were a little better than zero chance for Cooper...
If Henry Cooper did get a shot at Sonny, by all counts it looks like a late 1963 1 or 2 round blow-out. But who would Ali have fought, to get back in the picture. Late 1963 and 1964 would defintely have been lost, and unless he came back with a 'bang', he may have been on the outside in 1965 too. If he had lost to Cooper, what path would have been forced to take.
If Cassius Clay,as was,had lost to Cooper,the heavyweight scene would have been different,but only for a short while. We were soon to discover that the man who became Ali was made of pure warrior material. His inner steel would have got him back on winning ways,and a quick rematch with Cooper would have come about. Ali beats Cooper handily,and the first fight with Liston occurs one year later than it did,in 1965. History then gets restored to it's original path. I doubt whether Henry's manager Jim Wicks would have wanted any fight with Liston.
Yes, but Stevie G,, Whether Jim Wicks wanted it or not, can you imagine what kind of 'live gate' a Sonny Liston vs. Henry Cooper would have been like in the U.K. at Empire Stadium in Wembley,,,,,,100,000 spectators easy, with a 'live gate' of $7,500,000. Don't think the Henry Cooper team could turn that $$$$ down, despite having no chance at all, probably a 10-1 underdog. Depending on how bad Copper got beat up in a Liston title fight, could see Ali returning in late-1964 or early-1965, to redeem himself vs. Cooper in a re-match.
a rematch would have been set up,ali would have got himin the return.just would have slowed things down for a few moths i believe
it wouldn't of meant much because Ali just got caught with a shot, plain and simple. It wouldve had the same significance of Liston losing to marshall. an early, green career loss which he would likely rebound off of.
TG711, A great old article in the Philadelphia Inquirer, interview with Teddy King, Sonny's good friend. If Cassius Clay had lost to Henry Cooper, they would have fought Ingemar Johannson in Sweden or Philadelphia, in Sept/Oct 1963. Then Henry Cooper at Wembley Stadium in the United Kingdom for June 1964. After those (2) fights, Sonny would have been set for life, and there would have been no need for additional fights.
MR. Nobody gave Ol 'Enry much of chance in that fight, even in the U.K. Probably the biggest reason why Cassius Clay went to an 8-1 underdog. The 'mob' should have thanked Henry for helping drop the odds from 4-1 to 8-1.
Cooper's people admitted to ducking Liston. They wanted no part of him. Cooper would never have met Liston, I don't believe, whatever was on offer. Ali probably does get a shot after dispatching Cooper in a rematch where he takes the short-end.
McGrain,,,,,,,100,000 at Wembley = $8,000,000 Throw in another $5,000,000 for closed circuit and other ancillaries. Thats $13,000,000,,,,,,,,,Sonny Liston and Jack Nilon would have picked up Henry Cooper and his manager personally, and driven them to Wembley in a Gold-plated Rolls Royce, with a signed contract not to hurt him.
