Keys to beating Muhammad Ali

- Know that you're going the distance.

 

- Jab with him as Norton did

 

-bring a weapon

 

Mike Tyson.

 

Drop back slightly and jab when he throws his jab, as you’ve a chance of landing when follows up with his right cross…he had a tendency to lean in and drop his chin into range when throwing that punch.Pretty much the Norton strategy.
Or if you can, swarm and keep swarming.

 

You have to Float Like a Butterfly and Sting Like a Bee.

 

Might be interesting to try out-ranging him and playing the same kind of clinch games he did. Ali vs Wlad might end up a horrible, negative fight to watch from both guys. Fury is not as bad a choice as some might think for the same reason.

Be (almost) as marketable as he is, so the judges don't insist on handing Ali the decision. Again, Klitschko is a surprisingly interesting option. He can negotiate to bring Ali to Germany and fight in front of hometown German judges. Or have Fury bring him to Britain.

Just a couple random thoughts.

 

Also, when this comes up, people mention Povetkin occasionally as a guy who might do well on paper. Somebody described him as what Henry Cooper would look like if he was built like a linebacker, which is an amusing image and presumably the basis for the prediction.

 

Gil Clancy did instruct Oscar Bonavena on the night of Dec 7 1970 in his bout against Muhammad Ali in Madison Square Garden to just back away from Ali, Make him come to you, then attack. Oscar obviously forgot to do just that.

 

Eddie Futch described telling Norton to leave the hook at home, jab when Ali jabbed to throw Muhammad off his rhythm, and do what Liston wasn't able to do, come over the top with his right. That's not what actually happened in Ali I. Kenny came over the top to fracture Ali's jaw in round two.

The Ali lean was geared for slipping the hook, but Sonny Banks caught him for a flash KD off the ropes, and Cooper decked him with a counter hook. Frazier simply went with what he HAD to go with in the FOTC.

Composite keys:

Forget the hook.

The overhand right Norton had was a perfect head shot.

George Foreman was the best in the business at cutting off the ring.

Qawi was also excellent at keeping his lead foot between his opponent's feet, and had the best counterjab I saw, lashing out the instant his opponent jabbed. He's the LHW champion who would be my first choice to really give Ali headaches.

My choice for a one off or trilogy would be the Larry Holmes of 1982 with Futch and Arcel in his corner. Watch him fly around the ring counterclockwise during Shavers I. There's your ring cutting. Ali rarely minded giving away body shots. Check Tiger Williams for Holmes going downstairs. Nobody ever really out jabbed Holmes consistently. (Tiger could have done it to a developmental Holmes as he momentarily did.) Overhand right? See Evangelista for the definitive one punch knockout of the Assassin's career. By the time of the Cobb shutout, Larry had as much as any HW ever could for a peak Ali (particularly in his corner to plot the course, something of ridiculous importance). In his 1975 "autobiography" poorly ghost written by Richard Durham (Ali being dyslexic, so he never should have qualified for the draft and been exiled), he's described in the sparring for Kinshasa as "young, fast, smart Larry Holmes." (Durham stupidly wrote that Zack Clayton was the referee in Lewiston, instantly discrediting that book.)

Ali always telegraphed. Even a badly bloodied Cooper was able to make him miss in both their bouts (where Henry could not make Patterson miss immediately after his rematch with Ali).

Concerning temperament, Norton did have that down. Ali bemusedly told Cosell upon resigning the WBA and linear titles in 1979 that Ken saw right through his shtick, but Ali won their middle bout with a combination of movement and power. Move on Norton, he can't pull the trigger. Frazier could punch while in forward transit.

Jay "Champ" Thomas criticized Ali for being a clockwise mover, although he did dance right for Mildenberger. Larry could intercept that leftward movement by circling right (something SRL was also noted for).


Plenty of material in this thread by various thoughtful posters to distill from.

 

And the Hyptnotist too

 

Depends who you are- if you’re shorter keep the pressure constant, jab with him see where he moves if you tag him.

Try to time and bait the right uppercut for an easy left hook counter, also invest in taking his legs early and force midrange exchanges.

If the ref follows the rules and doesn’t let him octopus Ali always looked a bit more vulnerable up close, again lots of left hooks. If you’re taller lay back and if you’re good enough you’ll win, jab with him and figure out what comes back be a counter puncher.

Look where he sticks his head when he leans back during the jab exchanges, put your right hand or your left hook where he goes next time. He’s prone to patterns if you can make it work once you’ll get to again.

I’m not Eddie Futch so I’m no pro at this and I’m probably wrong on a lot of fronts but that’s my 0.0000002$ on how to beat just about the best HW ever.

 

You put my buddy Journeyman92 in the ring with Muhammad Ali, and Journeyman92 wins. Ha Ha. I am just messing with you my friend. Ha Ha.