I have to say that the more post exile Ali fights I rewatch, the more I find him to be a remarkable historical figure and salesman that was an unsatisfying performer. There is likely twenty fights post exile that Ali really stunk out the joint. You really have to rewatch to process this. A great Frazier 1 loss, a good Quarry rematch, a good Frazier rematch, a great and dramatic Foreman win, Manila .. then look at the stinkers .. outnumber these three to one ... the other obvious example is Floyd .. just observations ..
Ali really did fight far too long. Should have packed it in long before, so thats a major factor in not delivering great performances on such a tried and true sales pitch every time out. He was definitely a salesman first, fighter second in the 70's. Knew how to polarize the fans and general public, so either way, to see him lose or to see him win, you'll be tuning in. Would he have been better off being more selective and less active, or was his activity, even if against low quality opponents, what kept him sharp enough to compete on the world level? I disagree about Patterson II. Floyd came to fight with a chip on his shoulder about his back issue limiting him in their first encounter. He froze on both occasions. He has a plausible excuse for the first one. The second fight he simply got slapped around and clowned by a faded Ali. Patterson froze, meaning he wasn't pulling the trigger and would have done far better throwing more and being more aggressive, in not just the Ali fights, but all his major fights. Ellis, Quarry, Ingo. All winnable or won with less difficulty had he been more aggressive. Thats just my observation. Another great salesman but underwhelming performer is the second coming of Foreman... He had the back story, the fat old guy schtick... A wolf in sheep's clothing. Still that underlying proven monster with a smiling, peaceful, grandpa-like veneer now. He had some eye-opening KO's, but he was delivering on what you hoped he would do. He had a bunch of disappointing fights against similar opposition where you hoped he gets that KO, but was a snore and/or he underperformed.
Yeah, Foreman in the 90s is really the prototypical example of this. Other than maybe his two-round blastout of Cooney and the come-from-behind KO of Moorer, most of what he did in that second career is highly lackluster.
Well, he faced a lot of durable guys who weren't too skilled, resulting in long, boring fights. Also, a lot of the stinkers were post Frazier III when he was badly slipping,
Bonavena ( ending aside ), Ellis, Mathis, Mac Foster, Rudi Lubbers .. a lot of horribly dull fights in that little run .. Ali the personality sold it for sure ..
Watching the Ali fights now I see a different scenario to that I viewed when I was comparatively young,and some of those tussles look rather more mundane now than they did then.So I hope I see where you are coming from? Ali's actual style was never that of my own preference,I just think those of my generation got behind him. Perhaps its hard to judge him against others who do not have the historical baggage of his era?
David Haye for sure talked such a big game leading up to Valuev and Klitschko but fought like a dud in both fights after so much talk
Georges fight with Holyfield was entertaining and competitive and was a real shot in the arm for the heavyweight division and boxing when it occured. I’d say George’s second career was pretty decent up until he beat Moorer actually. He fought a lot of filler true, but that was interspersed with some solid performances against decent opposition. After that it was as you say very lacklustre though.
