Muhammad Ali - The Rope-a-Dope Con........

I'll probably get castigated (again!) for 'dissing' one of the Sport's great heroes, but I honestly believe that all the hokum about Ali 'planning' his so called 'rope-a-dope' tactics are just that - hokum.

I've watched his fight against the freight train that was George Foreman on numerous occasions, and it appears to me that Ali did his best to go toe-to-toe with big George early on, before running out of gas fairly early on (not surprisingly)and having to use the ropes to his advantage as best he could as the drama unfolded.

Fair play to him, he absorbed a sustained barrage of heavy blows (not all of which were taken on the arms, incidentally) for round after round, until the fairly crude attacks of the spent Foreman's fire were finally extinguished in the eighth round.

It could be argued (albeit without scientific proof) that this bout contributed in no small way to the condition in which Ali finds himself today.

I am in no way knocking Ali's tenacity and fighting spirit, which is beyond doubt, in winning this titanic battle (in which, I must admit, I thought Ali could literally lose his life prior to the first bell) but I think that the myth of Ali's master plan is almost on a par with the equally daft story of Angelo Dundee 'buying' Ali an extra 5 minutes or so after Henry Cooper had flattened him at the end of the previous round.

In truth, the minute between rounds was extended by no more than an extra 15 seconds, despite what your Grandad might tell you to the contrary!

 

You're entitled to your opinion.

Which is wrong.:bart

 

Ali is better than any fighter to ever come out of germany or ever will:deal

Myth my ass.

Usually the people that talk that kind of **** don't have anything better.

 

I wouldn't necessarily say that Ali was the 'superior boxer' that night.

He took a helluva lot - probably too much - punishment that night, in an almost ridiculous show of pride and macho bravado, to overcome the terrifying power of Foreman.

Many, many boxers have been inferior to their opponent, only to come through and defy all logic and win!

I'm not sure that Ali had any option other than to

a/ take a sustained beating and see what transpired as the fight progressed, hoping against hope that the monster in front of him would eventually punch himself out.

b/ Take the easy way out and possibly feign injury to avoid further punishment

c/ go toe to toe (as he tried early on) before 'going out on his shield' in 3 or 4 rounds.

Obviously, Ali would never quit (which, I am sure has cost him his health) and the futility of going 'at it' would have dawned on him fairly early on.

All that I am saying is that the r-a-d was no masterstroke; it just evolved like that as the fight progressed.

To that end, yes, he proved he was 'tougher' on the night, but the other two qualities ('better' and 'superior') are, IMO, open to debate.

 

George Foreman went on Jimmy Kimmel Live and said that the term rope-a-dope was actually created by the Ali camp in response to Foreman complaining about being drugged. George Foreman maintains, to this day, that was why it was created, to defuse Foreman's complaints[1].[citation needed]

Rope-a-dope.
Pure myth.
Deal with it.