This is inspired by the recent thread about Holmes and Foreman. Take the Ali of FOTC 1971 and put him in the ring with the Manila '75 version of Joe Frazier. The put the the 1971 incarnation of Frazier against the Manila '75 Muhammad Ali. Who would do better with these two timeshift fights ?
The 71 Frazier would probably do better against the 75 Ali than the 71 Ali would do against the 75 Frazier.
I feel that the '71 Frazier would win clearly on points,scoring a knockdown on the way. The '71 Ali would stop '75 Frazier around the ninth or tenth. Both Joe's eyes would be closing up by this stage.
I think it would be more suitable to put the 212 pound 1974 Ali of Frazier II in with the Smoke of 1971, as that middle version of Muhammad was the fastest, best prepared and conditioned edition of his second career. He rushed prematurely into the FOTC, while taking Joe too lightly going into Manila.
This question is a bit interesting. Ali had slipped a bit physically, but knew Frazier better and consequently fought smarter against him. He was also better prepared better IMO, in that that he went for bulk and strength instead of slimming down. He wasn't going to move for 15 against Frazier neither in 1971 or 1975, so he was better off training for fighting in the trenches. Seeing how a close it was in Manilla, the Frazier of '71 would probably pull it off, but I think it's entirely possible that Manilla Ali would give him an even tougher fight than he did in FOTC.
I agree. I think that the 75 Ali, while physically deteriorated, fought with a much better strategy and style against Frazier. He planted his feet more when he punched, which helped keep Frazier off; he also adapted his right hand to hit a low target, which I think was what ultimately saved him in Manilla. I think the 1971 Ali struggles to beat the 1975 Frazier and wins a 9-6 type decision, while the 1971 Frazier (who was like a force of nature) would stop the 1975 Ali.
I tend to believe the the 71 versions of both fighters would win but I guess the question is which 75 fighter would put up a better fight? I think 75 Frazier would. He was just so intense that night.
Good point. I've always thought that against each other,Ali was at his best in the second fight. I just chose '71 and '75 because of the time difference. Ali of 1974 v the Frazier of '71 would be extremely close.
Both '71 versions win. '75 Frazier has more success against '71 Ali than '75 Ali against '71 Frazier.
'71 Frazier vs '75 Ali - Frazier late TKO. '71 Ali vs '75 Frazier - Ali UD or late TKO (swelling). '75 Frazier puts up a tougher fight than '75 Ali in the match-ups.