You do not think it is at least of curiosity value? Ali was a phenomenon. the fight would of been huge, even in 1982. Bigger (mainstream) than any heavyweight fight today, with the exception of a possible (if highly unlikely) clash of Vitali and Vlad.
ali shouldn't have been fighting in 1980 nevermind 1982 when he had Parkinsons and important skills like co-ordination and reflexes are rapidly slowing and declining. for a fighter like Ali or any other that is suicide. 18 years earlier he was world champ - nuff said.
It could be argued he should never of fought post Thrilla, as hindsight shows he clearly was starting to struggle. My point is Weaver was on par-ish with Berbick at the time, and Ali was hardly outclassed by Trevor, so maybe there was a chance of one last hurrah for the Louisville Lip.
yeah then he wouldn't have had 5 losses on his record. only 2 v a peak frazier and norton with a broken jaw.
I think the reason Holmes was selected as an opponent instead of Weaver back then was due to styles. And the Ali corner had been hand picking opponents for a long long time. With Larry, they knew he was a boxer and needed and accumulation of punches for his effectiveness and specifically, a jab. That's a different physical dynamic to deal with for an old guy with deteriorating reflexes. Weaver was the rare breed with the rarest of skills--1 punch late ko power in both hands. Both the Tate & Coetzee ko's are 1 punch ko's from different hands. And late. That's a whole different risk than a boxer presents to an old fighter and the main reason you just don't see examples of 38 year old heavies fighting the youthful punchers. You see fewer examples of the old guy actually winning & they usually get starched bad like the Norton--cooney fight. Ali was hit a lot in all of his final bouts and they didn't want the big hitters like Weaver/Shavers rematch/Coetzee/Cooney/, but the other styles of fighters instead.
Muhammad Ali This content is protected , This content is protected ^ This is whats called taking optimism to a new level.
As a referee tho, he was hardly delivering flying elbows to the chest of Hulk Hogan from a high height.
The fight wouldnt have been that big everyone knew Ali was done after the Holmes fight. It would have got publicity obviously,but not from the real fans.
I do not know how old you are, but have no doubt, Ali was huge in my small town in England in 1982. Myself and my class mates were eight and everyone knew who Ali was, and it was huge deal when he fought. And as that means for me, the Holmes and Berbick fights (that I have memories of), it clearly shows Ali/Weaver would of been massive, even in 1982. What is a real fan? The Fan(cy), in a near literal sense, is someone who financially backs a fighter...
There is no limit to how low Ali could have fallen if he had fought on long enough. Weaver was a world class fighter and if Ali fights him in 1986 I would put money on him being the first to put Ali down for the count of ten. If the figfht takes place in 82 then Weaver would probably edge him.
Ali was in the mist of Parkinson's syndrome by 1978 / '79..... By '81 against Berbick in the Bahamas, Ali was a ghost at age 39....... Weaver KO's Ali for the full count in '82....... :| MR.BILL
That is no longer optimistic its now delusional. Not only would Weaver have beaten him then, he would have stopped him in a violent manner. Ali had nothing in 1980.