I was never a boxing fan until Clay / Ali came along .....can still remember laying in bed in the early 60's listing to my transistor radio and the Ali / Liston fight . I remember not understanding what it meant when Liston wouldn't get off his stool for the next round . I followed all of Ali's fights after that and always got a kick out of his banter , especially with Howard Cosell , .....these days that stuff is just trash talk and wayyy over done . With Ali is seemed entertaining . The "roper-dope" fight with Forman was probably the highlight for me . I also remember how difficult it was to watch him light the Olympic torch in Atlanta ....you could almost hear a pin drop as he shook and struggled and forced his Parkinson's riddled body to get the job done .
We knew it was just a matter of time before the disease got him . RIP , Ali .
Yes I agree: RIP Cassias Clay .. He was about my first real interest in boxing.. He was not only a great boxer but the best entertainer in the boxing world as well Every one of his fights was a great show..I thought he was the best ever for boxing and there has been nobody since that has done that much for boxing..I really never watch boxing any more But I never missed one of his fights.. To bad he had to suffer with that crummy disease for so long...He left a great legacy and many memories.. and died to early..
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For sure!! Quite a man and quite a loss! I did not realize he was as young, thought he was much older, maybe because he was in poor health for so many years. I remember listening to his fights on the radio. I used to box armature and remember Ken Norton came to our club around the mid 70's and he said Ali's punch was like a freight train, I believe in 73 Norton found out first hand after he suffered a broken jaw in a fight, I remembered the story from that night on the radio while I lay in my bed listening. Angelo
and died to early..