Mine is Ali - Quarry II. Ali looked phenomenal that night, great speed, extremely fast hands and feet, great skills. Quarry looked like he doesn't know where he is and what he has to do. Shortly thereafter Quarry easily decisioned Ron Lyle and destroyed Earnie Shavers. I think that was the best post-exile version of Ali.
Liston I, the best performance of his career. His speed, ring generalship and defense was off the charts. He took a genuinely great fighter, and completely dismantled him.
Ali Liston one was Ali at his best however as champion and the confidence being the champion conveys his second bout he was probably even better. Personally Ali Foreman was a thrilling fight. Every round waiting for Ali to cave and out of nowhere he kos the champion. Ali Frazier 3 when I saw it live on PPV close circuit I have never to this very day heard a crowd as thrilled watching a fight. One roar after another round after round. By round ten everyone thought Ali was done and then he surged once again. This time to win.
I always think his performance in the first Liston fight is overlooked in all the hullabaloo regarding Liston's showing or was it a fix etc. His previous fight against Cooper he'd clowned around was indisciplined got badly knocked down and deemed to have no chance. His transformation for the Liston fight was astonishing, in the way he was disciplined, tightened right up and got down to business.
An overlooked fight is Ali / Quarry I. For coming off a 3 year layoff, Ali looked pretty sharp. Quarry was tough too. I like the rematch also. That was maybe his 70's peak. I have an old World Boxing magazine from 73 I think & the writer picked Quarry to beat Ali in a third fight. I can't imagine that at all. Ali / Williams & Ali / London are two 60's fights that showcased his speed the best. The first Frazier fight is great but Ali clearly wasn't as conditioned as he'd be later. Some lulls in the later rounds if I remember correctly. The third fight is definitely one of the best. The first Ali fight I watched was the 2nd fight. It was on espn's Super Bouts. It's not as intense as the other two but it's not bad. For sheer drama I'd go with the Foreman fight. That plays like a movie!!
I've got a soft spot for his win over Foreman. Incredible. The whole build up, what George has done previously to Frazier and Norton, what nearly everyone thought would happen to Ali, George thought to be invincible, the way the fight went, everything. What an event.
I think the first Frazier fight was the greatest he was involved in. He lost the fight but that doesn't take anything away from his performance. That fight really lived up to the hype !
The Fight of the Century. He showed greatness in defeat. There be another hyped fight or one that exeeds the hype like it.
The one that brought me the most joy was the Foreman one. The sheer magical way that he won it. Not the best from a technical standpoint but simply because he shook up the world......again.
