I cant remember which one said it but they all agreed that it was funny how they were always the best of friends yet they played the media for fools in order to get money and they had people thinking that they hated each other when in reality they didnt. Joe was directly questioned about the Uncle Tom incident and other jibes and he said that he could not care less about them and it was all just a publicity stunt.
Did you know that shortly after Joe Frazier picked Ali up in his limosine and gave him money, because he was next to broke when he refused to join the US military and no promoter or governing body wanted anything to do with him because of the traitor tag, when Frazier dropped Ali off he started mouthing off at him in public and media view to ridicule him?Well afew days after that incident, whilst Frazier was stillshocked and hurtat Ali's actions after he had just helped him out financially when Ali was in desperate times, though it was never publicly known, Frazier was so fed up and humiliated with Ali's actions that he went to Ali's home in the hope of confronting him, but Ali was too frightened to step outside. Ali had next to no fighting skills out side the ring. Frazier was the epitome of a brawler.The media was never contacted because Frazier was fed up with Ali's bullshit antics that he just wanted to sort it out the old school way. I'd hardly call that a publicity stunt, seeing very few people then and still now know of the incident ever taking place.
Did you know that George Foreman was so outraged and hurt by Ali's attempts to get the natives from Zaire to turn against him with the 'Ali kill him!' (which he succeeded in doing) chants that he was close to calling off the bout? Foreman couldn't figure out how Ali was portraying him as the outcast (in racial terms) when the irony was, that they were the same skin colour.Infact,Foreman sent a number ofprivate messages to Ali through his camp that he was more than happy to sort matters out between him and Ali before the actual fight, because he was sick and tired of Ali's antics and racial slurs done in a subtle manner. Foreman forwarded those messages to Ali's camp in private because he didn't want the media involved. He just wanted to get it over and done with the old fashion way. Do you think Ali took up the offer? Like the coward he was outside the ring..NO! It was only after promoter Don King and President Mobutu Sese Seko Kuku Ngbendu Wa Za Banga (that's his name -no joke)begged Foreman to forget the verbal stuff that Ali was dribblingand take his anger into the ring that George decided to go ahead with it.I'd hardly call that a publicity stunt also,seeing very few people then and still now know of the incident ever taking place.
Ali's greatest asset was his ability to use his torso, almost in an elastic band manner in terms of his range of motion in his spinal cord, to avoid punches from the very best boxers of his time. When that rarely didn't work, he would resort to holding the back of the head of his opponents (illegaly)and bringing them in close to him in the hope of not getting hit. But the great fighters like Frazier knew he was vulnerable up close and would belt body shots into him all day long.
It's become a recent trend to subscribe to Ali's self-made claim of being the "Greatest", much out of nostalgia or even pity for the shell of Ali we see now, then of sicerity and genuineness. But, the truth is he was often in trouble against smaller fighters. Ali in his prime was almost knocked out by Henry Cooper, who was at best a club fighter.Henry Cooper weighed only 185 pounds and yet dropped him with a left hook. Bob Foster, a very good fighter, was 30 years old and only 180 pounds verses Ali's 221 pounds yet lasted 7 rounds and hurt Ali with a cut that required five stitches. Even though Ali knocked Foster down 7 times, it still required all those knock downs for him to beat the much smaller man.
As for those who think Marciano's record and performance in the ring was questionable and not credible, let me answer that by having some of the greatest names in boxing history give their opinions on the 'Rock' on my behalf--
"What's so often forgotten is that Marciano was truely a great fighter. It was his will to win that made him unbeatable." Archie Moore
"I had a bad weakness I kept hid throughout my career. I didn't like to be crowded, and Marciano always crowded his opponents. That's why I say I could <u>never</u> have beaten him." Joe Louis, May, 1990 issue of Boxing Illustrated
"Naturally, the first thought that comes to mind would have to be Muhammad Ali. Ali is more my time. But before my time, it would have to be Joe Louis or Rocky Marciano." Marvin Hagler when asked to name the greatest fighter of all time.
"Just look at Rocky Marciano's record. Nobody beat him. You can't take that from him." George Foreman on why he placed Marciano behind Louis as second greatest heavyweight of all time.
"Joe Louis is the greatest heavyweight champion of all time. Rocky Marciano is second only to Louis." Joe Frazier
"Well, letâs face it. He never got licked. Undefeated heavyweight champion of the world. I mean, how much better can you do than that?"
"Marciano is the most underrated heavyweight of all time. He had so much more than they ever gave him credit for. He was capable of getting those bigger, heavier guys and destroying them." Angelo Dundee.
"This man was one of the greatest champions ever. He refused to accept defeat. And nobody beat him." Sonny Liston.
Just for the record, I'm not saying that Marciano was the greatest heavyweight of all time in my opinion. My way of thinking is exactly the same as Joe Frazier's comments above.
