Hall Of Fame Nominee: Muhammad Ali

[WelshDevilRob]

Muhammad Ali

 

http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/8/89/Muhammad_Ali_NYWTS.jpg/200px-Muhammad_Ali_NYWTS.jpg

 

Muhammad Ali (born Cassius Marcellus Clay, Jr.; January 17, 1942) is a former American boxer and three-time World Heavyweight Champion, who is widely considered one of the greatest heavyweight championship boxers. As an amateur, he won a gold medal in the light heavyweight division at the 1960 Summer Olympics in Rome.[1] After turning professional, he went on to become the first boxer to win the lineal heavyweight championship three times.

 

Originally known as Cassius Clay, Ali changed his name after joining the Nation of Islam in 1964, subsequently converting to Islam in 1975 and more recently to Sufism.[when?][2] In 1967, Ali refused to be conscripted into the U.S. military, based on his religious beliefs and opposition to the Vietnam War. He was arrested and found guilty on draft evasion charges, stripped of his boxing title, and his boxing license was suspended. He was not imprisoned, but did not fight again for nearly four years while his appeal worked its way up to the U.S. Supreme Court, where it was successful.

 

Nicknamed "The Greatest", Ali was involved in several historic boxing matches. Notable among these are three with rival Joe Frazier and one with George Foreman, whom he beat by knockout to win the world heavyweight title for the second time. He suffered only five losses (four decisions and one TKO by retirement from the bout) with no draws in his career, while amassing 56 wins (37 knockouts and 19 decisions).[3] Ali was well known for his unorthodox fighting style, which he described as "float like a butterfly, sting like a bee", and employing techniques such as the rope-a-dope.[4] He was also known for his pre-match hype, where he would "trash talk" opponents on television and in person some time before the match, often with rhymes. These personality quips and idioms, along with an unorthodox fighting technique, made him a cultural icon. In later life, Ali developed Parkinson's disease. In 1999, Ali was crowned "Sportsman of the Century" by Sports Illustrated and "Sports Personality of the Century" by the BBC.

 

Amateur career and Olympic gold

 

Cassius Marcellus Clay, Jr., was born on January 17, 1942, in Louisville, Kentucky.[6] The younger of two boys, he was named after his father, Cassius Marcellus Clay, Sr., who was named for the 19th century abolitionist and politician of the same name. His father painted billboards and signs,[6] and his mother, Odessa Grady Clay, was a household domestic. Although Cassius Sr. was a Methodist, he allowed Odessa to bring up both Cassius and his elder brother Rudolph "Rudy" Clay (later renamed Rahman Ali) as Baptists.[7] He is a descendant of pre-Civil War era American slaves in the American South, and is predominantly of African-American descent, with some Irish and English ancestry.[8]

 

Clay was first directed toward boxing by the white Louisville police officer and boxing coach Joe E. Martin,[9] who encountered the 12-year-old fuming over the theft of his bicycle.[10] However, without Martin's knowledge, Clay also began training with Fred Stoner, an African-American trainer working at the local community center.[11] In this way, Clay could make $4 a week on Tomorrow's Champions, a local, weekly TV show that Martin hosted, while benefiting from the coaching of the more experienced Stoner. For the last four years of Clay's amateur career he was also trained by legendary boxing cutman Chuck Bodak.[12]

 

Clay won six Kentucky Golden Gloves titles, two national Golden Gloves titles, an Amateur Athletic Union National Title, and the Light Heavyweight gold medal in the 1960 Summer Olympics in Rome.[13] Clay's amateur record was 100 wins with five losses.

 

Ali states (in his 1975 autobiography) that he threw his Olympic gold medal into the Ohio River after being refused service at a 'whites-only' restaurant, and fighting with a white gang.[14] Whether this is true is still debated, although he was given a replacement medal at a basketball intermission during the 1996 Olympics in Atlanta, where he lit the torch to start the games.

 

Career

 

After his Olympic triumph, Clay returned to Louisville to begin his professional career. There, on October 29, 1960, he won his first professional fight, a six-round decision over Tunney Hunsaker, who was the police chief of Fayetteville, West Virginia.

 

Standing tall, at 6-ft, 3-in (1.91 m), Clay had a highly unorthodox style for a heavyweight boxer. Rather than the normal style of carrying the hands high to defend the face, he instead relied on foot speed and quickness to avoid punches, and carried his hands low.

 

From 1960 to 1963, the young fighter amassed a record of 19–0, with 15 knockouts. He defeated boxers such as Tony Esperti, Jim Robinson, Donnie Fleeman, Alonzo Johnson, George Logan, Willi Besmanoff, Lamar Clark (who had won his previous 40 bouts by knockout), Doug Jones and Henry Cooper.

 

Clay built a reputation by correctly predicting the round in which he would "finish" several opponents, and by boasting before his triumphs.[6] Clay admitted he adopted the latter practice from "Gorgeous" George Wagner, a popular professional wrestling champion in the Los Angeles area who drew thousands of fans.[6] Often referred to as "the man you loved to hate," George could incite the crowd with a few heated remarks, and Ali followed suit.

 

Among Clay's victims were Sonny Banks (who knocked him down during the bout), Alejandro Lavorante, and the aged Archie Moore (a boxing legend who had fought over 200 previous fights, and who had been Clay's trainer prior to Angelo Dundee). Clay had considered continuing using Moore as a trainer following the bout, but Moore had insisted that the cocky "Louisville Lip" perform training camp chores such as sweeping and dishwashing. He also considered having his idol, Sugar Ray Robinson, as a manager, but instead hired Dundee.

 

Clay first met Dundee when the latter was in Louisville with light heavyweight champ Willie Pastrano. The teenaged Golden Gloves winner traveled downtown to the fighter's hotel, called Dundee from the house phone, and was asked up to their room. He took advantage of the opportunity to query Dundee (who was working with, or had, champions Sugar Ramos and Carmen Basilio) about what his fighters ate, how long they slept, how much roadwork (jogging) they did, and how long they sparred.

 

Following his bout with Moore, Clay won a disputed 10-round decision over Doug Jones in a matchup that was named "Fight of the Year" for 1963. Clay's next fight was against Henry Cooper, who knocked Clay down with a left hook near the end of the fourth round. The fight was stopped in the fifth due to deep cuts over Cooper's eyes.

 

Despite these close calls, Clay became the top contender for Sonny Liston's title. Despite his impressive record, however, he was not widely expected to defeat the champ. The fight was scheduled for February 25, 1964 in Miami, Florida, but was nearly canceled when the promoter, Bill Faversham, heard that Clay had been seen around Miami and in other cities with the controversial Malcolm X, a member of The Nation of Islam. Because of this, news of this association was perceived as a potential gate-killer to a bout which, given Liston's overwhelming status as the favorite to win (7–1 odds),[15] had Clay's colorful persona and nonstop braggadocio as its sole appeal.

 

Faversham confronted Clay about his association with Malcolm X (who, at the time, was actually under suspension by the Nation as a result of controversial comments made in the wake of President Kennedy's assassination). While stopping short of admitting he was a member of the Nation, Clay protested the suggested cancellation of the fight. As a compromise, Faversham asked the fighter to delay his announcement about his conversion to Islam until after the fight. The incident is described in the 1975 book The Greatest: My Own Story by Ali (with Richard Durham).

 

During the weigh-in on the day before the bout, the ever-boastful Clay, who frequently taunted Liston during the buildup by dubbing him "the big ugly bear" (among other things), declared that he would "float like a butterfly and sting like a bee," and, summarizing his strategy for avoiding Liston's assaults, said, "Your hands can't hit what your eyes can't see."

 

At the pre-fight weigh-in, Clay's pulse rate was around 120, more than double his norm of 54.[16] Liston, among others, misread this as nervousness. In the opening rounds, Clay's speed kept him away from Liston's powerful head and body shots, as he used his height advantage to beat Liston to the punch with his own lightning-quick jab.[16]

 

By the third round, Clay was ahead on points and had opened a cut under Liston's eye.[16] Liston regained some ground in the fourth, as Clay was blinded by a substance in his eyes.[16] It is unconfirmed whether this was something used to close Liston's cuts, or deliberately applied to Liston's gloves;[16] however, Bert Sugar (author, boxing historian and insider) has recalled at least two other Liston fights in which a similar situation occurred, suggesting the possibility that the Liston corner deliberately attempted to cheat.

 

Liston began the fourth round looking to put away the challenger. As Clay struggled to recover his vision, he sought to escape Liston's offensive. He was able to keep out of range until his sweat and tears rinsed the substance from his eyes, responding with a flurry of combinations near the end of the fifth round. By the sixth, he was looking for a finish and dominated Liston. Then, Liston shocked the boxing world when he failed to answer the bell for the seventh round, stating he had a shoulder injury. At the end of the fight, Clay boasted to the press that doubted him before the match, proclaiming, "I shook up the world!"

 

When Clay beat Liston, he was the youngest boxer (age 22) ever to take the title from a reigning heavyweight champion, a mark that stood until Mike Tyson won the title from Trevor Berbick on 22 November 1986. At the time, Floyd Patterson (dethroned by Liston) had been the youngest heavyweight champ ever (age 21), but he won the title during an elimination tournament following Rocky Marciano's retirement by defeating Archie Moore, the light-heavyweight champion at the time.

 

http://thewrightmemorabilia.com/shop/images/muhammad_ali_versus_sonny_liston.jpg

 

In the rematch with Liston, which was held in May 1965 in Lewiston, Maine, Ali (who had by then publicly converted to Islam and changed his name) won by knockout in the first round as a result of what came to be called the "phantom punch." Many believe that Liston, possibly as a result of threats from Nation of Islam extremists, or in an attempt to "throw" the fight to pay off debts, waited to be counted out (see Muhammad Ali versus Sonny Liston). Others, however, discount both scenarios and insist that it was a quick, chopping Ali punch to the side of the head that legitimately felled Liston.

 

On November 22, 1965, Ali fought Floyd Patterson in his second title defense. Patterson lost by technical knockout at the end of the 12th round. As would later occur with Ernie Terrell, many sportswriters accused Ali of "carrying" Patterson so that he could physically punish him without knocking him out. Ali countered that Patterson, who said his punching prowess was limited when he strained his sacroiliac, was not as easy to down as may have appeared.

 

Ali was scheduled to fight WBA champion Ernie Terrell (the WBA stripped Ali of his title after his agreement to fight a rematch with Liston) on March 29, 1966, but Terrell backed out. Ali won a 15-round decision against substitute opponent George Chuvalo. He then went to England and defeated Henry Cooper by stoppage on cuts May 21, and knocked out Brian London in the third round in August. Ali's next defense was against German southpaw Karl Mildenberger, the first German to fight for the title since Max Schmeling. In one of the tougher fights of his life, Ali stopped his opponent in round 12.

 

Ali returned to the United States in November 1966 to fight Cleveland "Big Cat" Williams in the Houston Astrodome. According to the Sports Illustrated account, the bout drew an indoor world record 35,460 fight fans. A year and a half before the fight, Williams had been shot in the stomach at point-blank range by a Texas policeman. As a result, Williams went into the fight missing one kidney and 10 feet of his small intestine, and with a shriveled left leg from nerve damage from the bullet. Ali beat Williams in three rounds.

 

On February 6, 1967, Ali returned to a Houston boxing ring to fight Terrell in what became one of the uglier fights in boxing. Terrell had angered Ali by calling him Clay, and the champion vowed to punish him for this insult. During the fight, Ali kept shouting at his opponent, "What's my name, Uncle Tom ... What's my name?" Terrell suffered 15 rounds of brutal punishment, losing 13 rounds on two judges' scorecards, but Ali did not knock him out. Analysts, including several who spoke to ESPN on the sports channel's "Ali Rap" special, speculated that the fight continued only because Ali wanted to thoroughly punish and humiliate Terrell. After the fight, Tex Maule wrote, "It was a wonderful demonstration of boxing skill and a barbarous display of cruelty." When asked about this during a replay of the fight on ABC's popular "Wide World of Sports" by host Howard Cosell, Ali said he was not unduly cruel to Terrell- that boxers are paid to punch all their opponents into submission or defeat. He pointed out that if he had not hit and hurt Terrell, Terrell would have hit and hurt him, which is standard practice. Cosell's repeated reference to the topic surprised Ali. Following his final defense against Zora Folley in March 1967 Ali would be stripped of his title the following month for refusing to be drafted into the Army[6] and had his professional boxing license suspended.

 

In 1970, while his case was still on appeal, Ali was allowed to fight again. On August 12, 1970, with the help of Leroy R. Johnson, a Georgia State Senator, he was granted a license to box by the City of Atlanta Athletic Commission.[23] In Atlanta on October 26, 1970, he stopped Jerry Quarry on a cut after three rounds. Shortly after the Quarry fight, the New York State Supreme Court ruled that Ali had been unjustly denied a boxing license. Once again able to fight in New York, he fought Oscar Bonavena at Madison Square Garden in December 1970. After a tough 14 rounds, Ali stopped Bonavena in the 15th, paving the way for a title fight against Joe Frazier, who was himself undefeated.

 

Ali and Frazier met in the ring on March 8, 1971, at Madison Square Garden. The fight, known as '"The Fight of the Century," was one of the most eagerly anticipated bouts of all time and remains one of the most famous. It featured two skilled, undefeated fighters, both of whom had legitimate claims to the heavyweight crown. Frank Sinatra—unable to acquire a ringside seat—took photos of the match for Life magazine. Legendary boxing announcer Don Dunphy and actor and boxing aficionado Burt Lancaster called the action for the broadcast, which reached millions of people. The fight lived up to the hype, and Frazier punctuated his victory by flooring Ali with a hard, leaping left hook in the 15th and final round. Frazier retained the title on a unanimous decision, dealing Ali his first professional loss.

 

In 1973, Ali fought Ken Norton, who broke Ali's jaw and won by split decision in 12 rounds. Ali won the rematch, also by split decision, on September 10, 1973, which set up Ali-Frazier II, a nontitle rematch with Joe Frazier, who had already lost his title to George Foreman. The bout was held on January 28, 1974, with Ali winning a unanimous 12-round decision.

 

In one of the biggest upsets in boxing history, Ali regained his title on October 30, 1974 by defeating champion George Foreman in their bout in Kinshasa, Zaire. Hyped as "The Rumble in the Jungle", the fight was promoted by Don King.

 

Almost no one, not even Ali's long-time supporter Howard Cosell, gave the former champion a chance of winning. Analysts pointed out that Joe Frazier and Ken Norton had given Ali four tough battles in the ring and won two of them, while Foreman had knocked out both of them in the second round. As a matter of fact, so total was the domination that, in their bout, Foreman had knocked down Frazier an incredible six times in only four minutes and 25 seconds.

 

During the bout, Ali employed an unexpected strategy. Leading up to the fight, he had declared he was going to "dance" and use his speed to keep away from Foreman and outbox him. However, in the first round, Ali headed straight for the champion and began scoring with a right hand lead, clearly surprising Foreman. Ali caught Foreman nine times in the first round with this technique but failed to knock him out. He then decided to take advantage of the young champion's weakness: staying power. Foreman had won 37 of his 40 bouts by knockout, mostly within three rounds. Eight of his previous bouts didn't go past the second round. Ali saw an opportunity to outlast Foreman, and capitalized on it.

 

In the second round, the challenger retreated to the ropes—inviting Foreman to hit him, while counterpunching and verbally taunting the younger man. Ali's plan was to enrage Foreman and absorb his best blows to exhaust him mentally and physically. While Foreman threw wide shots to Ali's body, Ali countered with stinging straight punches to Foreman's head. Foreman threw hundreds of punches in seven rounds, but with decreasing technique and potency. Ali's tactic of leaning on the ropes, covering up, and absorbing ineffective body shots was later termed "The Rope-A-Dope".

 

By the end of the seventh round, Foreman was exhausted. In the eighth round, Ali dropped Foreman with a combination at center ring and Foreman failed to make the count. Against the odds, Ali had regained the title.

 

The "Rumble in the Jungle" was the subject of a 1996 Academy Award winning documentary film, When We Were Kings. The fight and the events leading up to it are extensively depicted in both John Herzfeld's 1997 docudrama Don King: Only in America and Michael Mann's 2001 docudrama, Ali.

 

http://thepursuitoffitness.com/wp-content/uploads/2010/12/Muhammad-Ali.jpg

 

In March 1975, Ali faced Chuck Wepner in a bout that inspired the original Rocky. While it was largely thought that Ali would dominate, Wepner surprised everyone by not only knocking Ali down in the ninth round, but nearly going the distance. Ali eventually stopped Wepner in the fading minutes of the 15th round. Following a title defense with Ron Lyle, in July Ali faced Joe Bugner, winning a 15 round decision.

 

On October 1, 1975, Ali fought Joe Frazier for the third time.[6] The bout was promoted as the Thrilla in Manila[6] by Don King, who had ascended to prominence following the Ali-Foreman fight. The anticipation was enormous for this final clash between two great heavyweights. Ali believed Frazier was "over the hill" by that point. Ali's frequent insults, slurs and demeaning poems increased the anticipation and excitement for the fight, but also enraged a determined Frazier. Regarding the fight, Ali famously remarked, "It will be a killa... and a chilla... and a thrilla... when I get the gorilla in Manila."

 

The fight lasted 14 grueling rounds in temperatures approaching 100 degrees Fahrenheit. Ali won many of the early rounds, but Frazier staged a comeback in the middle rounds, while Ali lay on the ropes. By the late rounds, however, Ali had reasserted control and the fight was stopped when Frazier was unable to answer the bell for the 15th and final round (his eyes were swollen closed). Frazier's trainer, Eddie Futch, refused to allow Frazier to continue.

 

In February 1976, Ali easily beat Jean-Pierre Coopman. In April 1976 he defeated Jimmy Young and then Richard Dunn the following month, which would turn out to be Ali's last knockout victory. Following that fight, he staged an exhibition match with professional wrestler and Mixed Martial Artist Antonio Inoki.[24] Although widely perceived as a publicity stunt, the match against Inoki would have a long-term detrimental affect on Ali's mobility. Inoki spent much of the fight on the ground trying to damage Ali’s legs, while Ali spent most of the fight dodging the kicks or staying on the ropes.[25] At the end of 15 rounds, the bout was called a draw. Ali's legs, however, were bleeding, leading to an infection. He suffered two blood clots in his legs as well.[24]

 

In September 1976, at Yankee Stadium, Ali faced Ken Norton in their third fight, with Ali winning a close but unanimous 15-round decision. 1977 saw Ali defend his title against Alfredo Evangelista and Earnie Shavers. Fight doctor Ferdie Pacheco left Ali's camp following the Shavers fight after being rebuffed for advising Ali to retire.

 

In February 1978, Ali lost the heavweight title to 1976 Olympics Champion Leon Spinks. On September 15, 1978, Ali fought a rematch in the New Orleans Louisiana Superdome against Spinks for the WBA version of the Heavyweight title, winning it for a record third time. Ali retired following this victory on June 27, 1979, but returned in 1980 to face current champion Larry Holmes in an attempt to win a heavyweight title an unprecedented four times. Angelo Dundee refused to let his man come out for the 11th round, in what became Ali's only loss by anything other than a decision. Ali's final fight, a loss by unanimous decision after 10 rounds, was to up-and-coming challenger Trevor Berbick in 1981.

 

Source: wikipedia

[WelshDevilRob]

Nominated by battlingsiki

 

Muhammad Ali

 

"Considered one of the greatest heavyweight championship boxers of all time. After turning professional, he went on to become the first boxer to win the lineal heavyweight championship three times.

 

Nicknamed 'The Greatest', Ali was involved in several historic boxing matches. In 1999, Ali was crowned "Sportsman of the Century" by Sports Illustrated and "Sports Personality of the Century" by the BBC.

 

Got me into boxing back in 1980.

 

The greatest." - Battlingsiki

[WelshDevilRob]

Please Vote in the Poll above.

 

Muhammad Ali: do you believe he should be in the Hall Of Fame - Yes or No?

[WelshDevilRob]

Votes also running for:

 

Jimmy Wilde: http://budweiserboxing.forumcircle.com/viewtopic.php?t=9004

 

Sugar Ray Robinson: http://budweiserboxing.forumcircle.com/viewtopic.php?t=9001

[grapevine241]

a definitive yes

[Dallen]

Ali is the ultimate heavyweight,took the division to new hieghts

[saigon]

Great chin, great hand speed and fearless. thumbs up from me. Great class this time around wilde, robinson, and ali.

[Skav]

Absolutely, even though I'm a bit sick of hearing about him.

[Jabandmove]

YES - I don't think anyone could even put a case for saying no.

[Crusader]

Absolutely, this man is 'the boxe' !!!

[smokin]

as a boxer yes , as a human being then no

[davemurphy]

Sorry, but I'm drawing the line here and voting No. A good START to a Hall of Fame Career, but the 3.5 years he took off to do Dancing with the Stars in the Late-60's and losing fights to average fighters like Joe Frazier, Ken Norton, and Larry Holmes outweighs the big wins against Jean Pierre Coopman and in the second fight with the great Leon Spinks. A win over a very ordinary George Foreman in a fight that few people saw from Africa does little for his case. Sorry, he simply didn't do enough in my book. Next!!!

 

 

grin//

[WelshDevilRob]

Level of Competition, skills and ability, heart and longevity means he is a definate Yes from me.

[davemurphy]

Sorry, but I'm drawing the line here and voting No. A good START to a Hall of Fame Career, but the 3.5 years he took off to do Dancing with the Stars in the Late-60's and losing fights to average fighters like Joe Frazier, Ken Norton, and Larry Holmes outweighs the big wins against Jean Pierre Coopman and in the second fight with the great Leon Spinks. A win over a very ordinary George Foreman in a fight that few people saw from Africa does little for his case. Sorry, he simply didn't do enough in my book. Next!!!

 

 

grin//

 

Well, I guess that Joke fell a little bit flat.....or people simply think I was Insane mlol/

[gavpowell]

Sorry, but I'm drawing the line here and voting No. A good START to a Hall of Fame Career, but the 3.5 years he took off to do Dancing with the Stars in the Late-60's and losing fights to average fighters like Joe Frazier, Ken Norton, and Larry Holmes outweighs the big wins against Jean Pierre Coopman and in the second fight with the great Leon Spinks. A win over a very ordinary George Foreman in a fight that few people saw from Africa does little for his case. Sorry, he simply didn't do enough in my book. Next!!!

 

 

grin//

 

Well, I guess that Joke fell a little bit flat.....or people simply think I was Insane mlol/

 

I just figured LondonRingRules had learned how to hack ;)

 

 

I've nothing much to contribute to the obvious threads, so perhaps it's time to have some more controversial ones. Except I can only think of Naz :(

[oxo1947]

Ali is the ultimate heavyweight,took the division to new hieghts

 

He took the sport of Boxing to new heights -- First time even little old ladies were interested in who won a fight.

 

As an athlete, in a class of his own.

[davemurphy]

Sorry, but I'm drawing the line here and voting No. A good START to a Hall of Fame Career, but the 3.5 years he took off to do Dancing with the Stars in the Late-60's and losing fights to average fighters like Joe Frazier, Ken Norton, and Larry Holmes outweighs the big wins against Jean Pierre Coopman and in the second fight with the great Leon Spinks. A win over a very ordinary George Foreman in a fight that few people saw from Africa does little for his case. Sorry, he simply didn't do enough in my book. Next!!!

 

 

grin//

 

Well, I guess that Joke fell a little bit flat.....or people simply think I was Insane mlol/

 

I just figured LondonRingRules had learned how to hack ;)

 

 

I've nothing much to contribute to the obvious threads, so perhaps it's time to have some more controversial ones. Except I can only think of Naz :(

 

 

LOL, yeah, I don't know if I trust Londoner not to do that grin// Once we get the Robinsons and Alis out of the way then we can get to controversial ones and get some good debate.

[telboy66]

I have a controversial nomination to put forward Len Harvey the finest boxer of his time who fought through the weights,a master boxer who could dig when required, I don't anticipate an overwhelming yes vote but you young guys only need to check his record to see he deserves to be there

[grapevine241]

Sorry, but I'm drawing the line here and voting No. A good START to a Hall of Fame Career, but the 3.5 years he took off to do Dancing with the Stars in the Late-60's and losing fights to average fighters like Joe Frazier, Ken Norton, and Larry Holmes outweighs the big wins against Jean Pierre Coopman and in the second fight with the great Leon Spinks. A win over a very ordinary George Foreman in a fight that few people saw from Africa does little for his case. Sorry, he simply didn't do enough in my book. Next!!!

 

 

grin//

 

Well, I guess that Joke fell a little bit flat.....or people simply think I was Insane mlol/

 

it was funny mlol/

[londoner]

Ali is either the best or the 2nd best heavyweight boxer of all time IMO. The other guy i rank as his equal is Joe Louis. I just can't decide who i think was the greater heavyweight.

[WelshDevilRob]

Get your votes in.

[jakeameyers]

Best footwork of all time for a heavyweight -- arguably, in ANY weight class -- and top 3 combination of chin and heart. Smart as hell, too: psyched out many a top-notch fighter to win before the bout even started. No doubt whatsoever he's a hall-of-famer.

[WelshDevilRob]

Muhammad Ali is now officially the 1st boxer to get into the BudweiserBoxing Hall Of Fame.

 

Yes 96%

[ 30 ]

 

No 3% [ 1 ]

 

Hall of Fame:

http://budweiserboxing.forumcircle.com/viewtopic.php?p=61974#61974