Was Ali overrated?

Was Ali overrated? Feb 26, 2019 21:23:06 GMT

Quote

Post by TheGoodMan19 on Feb 26, 2019 21:23:06 GMT

Feb 26, 2019 21:01:25 GMT permutojoe said:

Feb 25, 2019 17:59:01 GMT TheGoodMan19 said:

Gimmick? He made Foreman fight his fight. How is that a gimmick? A fake punt is a gimmick, the hidden ball trick is a gimmick.

Ali fought in the greatest era in the HW history. Ali, Frazier, Foreman and Ken Norton could all be counted as top 2% of all HW boxers. Any one would have thumped Tyson, Lewis or any HW "boxing" now.

And you might add Sonny Liston to the "who did he actually beat" list.

You don't see how the rope-a-dope was a major gimmick? And as you probably already know the wins over Norton were both decisions that were questioned. The most significant moment between the two came when Norton broke Ali's jaw in the first fight. And you probably already know the issues with the Liston fight too.

Letting your opponent wear himself out and then beating him after he tired wasn't invented by Ali. Jack Johnson did it routinely. So did Rocky Marciano. It was the biggest weapon on Jake LaMotta's arsenal. Ali just gave it a fancy name.

Ali fought four of the top 10 HW in Ring Magazine's list, Holmes, Foreman, Frazier and Liston. Norton was 12. I'd wager no other boxer in history had to navigate a list like that. Ali had brains too. He knew how to get into an opponents head before a fight. He did it to Liston, Frazier and Foreman.

The issues with the Liston fight are rumors.