Where would Muhammad Ali be rated had he permanently retired in 1967 ?

Depends how the situation would have played out in the 70's. Without Ali, it is possible that Foreman reigns for way longer, maybe even retires undefeated. That bumps his spot. What's Frazier without his win over Ali? How do the 80's look like?

Too many variables imo. But to simplify it, I would say he's around Top 10-15 HW based of his run in the 60's.

 

He would be 29-0, including 10-0 in world title fights, with wins over Liston x 2, Patterson, Terrell, Williams, Folley, Mildenberger and Cooper, all clear, mostly in non competitive bouts. That stacks up well against most of the other ATG HWs.

Joe Louis would be the consensus HW GOAT, whilst Ali would be there with Holmes, Lewis, Marciano, et al, in contention for the no.2 spot.

 

Not high

 

It would have an impact on all of HW boxing history after 1967.
I think that in that case Ali would be viewed in a similar way as Marciano is viewed today.
Joe Louis would definitely be HW ATG No.1 in that case, and Ali would IMHO (it all boils down to "in my books" anyway) in that case be somewhere around HW ATG No.5.

 

Biggest What IF in boxing maybe?
Top 5-10 heavyweight OAT

 

You see how someone like Sal Sánchez is treated, I expect similar here. Considered great, but how great? That will vary significantly.

 

It will be hard to top this as the most astute post in the thread (though hold the phone if BF2002 arrives). Ali’s exit entirely from the 70’s has consequences going all the way into the 90’s - Foreman’s return likely never occurs in this timeline (though he probably enjoys at minimum a four or five year reign in the 70’s). Various fighters are impacted, both positively & negatively, altering their positions &, by inevitable extension, Ali’s.

The inconvenient answer is it’s completely unknowable where Ali winds up once this larger picture is taken into consideration.

 

What if a super Ali appeared in the 70s? He was 6'6 and a ripped 250 pounds with the speed of 60s Ali, the chin of 70s Ali, the punching power and ferocity of a young Mike Tyson. What happens next?

 

Probably gets knocked over by Ross Purrity & spends the next fifteen years hugging his way to supreme dominance.

 

Ha ha ha I get it!! You're talking about Wlad Klitchsko who was also 6'6 250!! Ha ha ha

 

I agree. A great that wasn't able to show us all that he had, but what we saw was enough.
I think Foreman likely reigns undefeated over the seventies, and maybe even most of the eighties. I can't say that Holmes would come in to dethrone him because the Holmes that we'd see in that reality would not be the same, as good as he was in his own right, I can't believe that he'd be the same without the training he got while being in Ali's camp.

 

Still the best Boxer in his family, to be fair.

 

That’s a good point about Holmes I didn’t consider. He’d be minus Ali’s tutelage, both intentional & otherwise. Holmes as he is I see as about 50-50 with a peak Foreman.