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NEWS > SPORTS > MUHAMMAD ALI WINS FINAL VICTORY OVER JOE FRAZIER
MUHAMMAD ALI WINS FINAL VICTORY OVER JOE FRAZIER
November 8 2011
Philadelphia, PA – ‘Down goes Frazier, down goes Frazier’. Those words, spoken by legendary broadcaster Howard Cosell, are perhaps the most recognizable in the history of sport. Aside from the catchiness of the comment itself, the words also symbolized the end of an era in a battle between two giants of boxing.
It was in that fight when Joe Frazier lost his world championship belt, a belt he had defended against the greatest boxer of all time, Muhammad Ali, a belt which could only have been taken by an even better fighter, in that case George Foreman.
For many that fight was the last great fight of an era, one that saw the real peak of the sport and most of the greatest fighters to ever step into the ring. That era is long gone and the fighters from that time have all aged and moved on. Now one of them, Smoking Joe, is gone forever, succumbing to liver cancer at the age of 67, a attack far more deadly than anything Ali or Foreman could ever have delivered, putting Frazier down for good.
“The world has lost a great champion. I will always remember Joe with respect and admiration. My sympathy goes out to his family and loved ones,” said Ali of his old rival.
“Joe Frazier was the most amazing fighter but he had every big man in boxing afraid of little guys,” said Foreman.
Later fighters such as Mike Tyson and Manny Pacquiao also paid tribute to Frazier but it is the words from the men who fought him which will likely ring most true to boxing fans and Frazier’s family.
Frazier retired with a 32-4-1 record, fewer losses than Ali, though the greatest did win the final fight.
“That first fight between Frazier and Ali really did change the sport. It was a massive fight, a spectacle on scale unlike anything it had seen before, and really did a lot to cement the legends of both men, but particularly Ali. It seems strange that a loss meant so much for his legend, but that’s what happens sometimes,” said Scrape TV Sports analyst Mark Marvins. “It was also the start of the greatest rivalry in the sport and led to perhaps the greatest fight ever. It made Ali a better fighter and now he has the final victory, the final word over Frazier.”
The ‘Thrilla in Manila’ between the two men is widely considered the greatest bout ever. Ali won that one.
“The two men, by that point, were never going to escape each other’s shadows. Well, Frazier for sure. I mean Ali is the greatest, Frazier not so much but without him it is possible that Ali would not have become so great. Every great person needs and antagonist and that is what Frazier was, in boxing and in life. Perhaps this will inspire Ali to live even longer,” continued Marvins. “I mean Ali has been suffering from a major disease for years yet has gone on. Frazier was diagnosed only a few weeks ago and now he’s dead. There isn’t a better comment on the two than that, I think. Ali has the final victory.”
George Foreman was easily the more vocal of the two men paying tribute, probably because he can be.
Alexi Orton, Sports Correspondent
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