Muammad Ali's Bum-of-the-Month challengers

Of course not. But if you fight as often as he did you can't face world class opposition all the time, there just isn't enough of them. He faced Elllis, Quarry (twice), Bonavena, Norton (twice), Bugner and Patterson without even being champ. That's not bad.

But as a champion you, of course, should fight the best opposition as often as possible. Amazing how many who haven't, really.

 

Henry Cooper got the title shot because he knocked Ali down in the first fight, and the split glove and all that. Ali should really have fought Terrell in Toronto, but since the whole "ain't got no quarell"-ruckus came in between and Terrell pulled out Chuvalo became an almost last minute replacement.

But seriously, this is a bit silly. If you go over every contender like that, you're gonna find a lot of similar things. Chuvalo was a consistent top 10 contender for most of the 60's and Lyle for much of the 70's. They were no bums.

You have a guy that met ca 30 ranked contenders during his career (some 50% of his total fights) and here and there he had some easy fill-out fights. So what?

Personally, I feel one fight is missing from Ali's record, and that's a rematch against D. Jones. Otherwise, it looks good to me.

 

While heir credentials might have been questionable at the time the fights took place, I do think that Ali was going to have to meet both these guys at some point.

 

You are underrating Cooper then. He was ranked in the ring top10 a total of 7 years, 3 of which in the top5. Brian London only managed to breach the top10 twice, at the lowest possible spot of #10. Cooper is clearly a level above London in any way possible.

It's a pity Cooper is mostly remembered as a cut prone, small fighter with only a left hook, but he was pretty good. And no one can take the fact that he is the closest man on the planet to knock out Ali, away from him.

 

I hate the word "bum" when referring to boxers, period.

 

They pay two dollarsd to watch a man bleed and they get to call him a bum?

Jimmy Braddock.

 

Henry was a warrior and that was a hell of a hook he landed on Ali...Cooper was a much better fighter than London....As an older fighter him and big Joe Bugner fought to a close scrap...Patterson stopped him cold but Henry was one of the best to come out of England and Europe in those days...Things have changed but Henry was no Bum

 

Sounds like Jimmy was of the same opinion as me.

 

I fully agree with this one. If I recall Cooper's two fights with Ali, he was giving Ali a run for his money in both fights until the thin skin around the eyes let go as it did in alot of his fights. I remember watching the Ali-London (fight?) . There was no fight and London folded like an accordian when Ali hit him a few times.This is the only London (battle) I ever saw. After seeing this pathetic effort by London I am amazed he was able to defeat Zora Folley and also knock Ingemar Johannson down and almost out. So maybe poor old Brian was alot better than I give him credit for.

 

I don't know what you found funny, but it might be worth being more precise. When I said Tyson's reign might be the best I meant in terms of average level of opposition. All his challengers was legitimate contenders (well, Biggs...).

But all in all I view Louis's reign as the greatest, encompassing 12 years and 25 defences as it did.