BoxRec

Would the Sonny Liston that won the title against Patterson at 32 years old vs. the 32 year old Ali that beat Foreman in Zaire have been any different than their first match up? Basically, could a slightly slower and less mobile Ali have done the same thing to a slightly quicker Liston?

A better worded question would have been Liston (1962) vs. Ali (1974)

I think Ali would have had a much harder fight, his speed and movement were key in the Liston fights. Tough one to call but I think Ali would still have found a way to win.

I believe Ali would win, via his chin.........but like the Thrilla in manila.....it might feel more like what you feel like when you lose a fight.

Great question. Certainly Ali would not be successful employing the rope-a-dope on a good fighter like Liston and wouldn't be able to use his speed like he did in their matchup. Dare I say I might pick Sonny in this one.

I would pick Ali. Ali was Great in Zaire. He was more mature and possibly hit harder in 1974, albeit a bit slower.

Ali wasn't completely immobile at 32, he just wasn't as springy as he was at 22. Liston would've definitely had his moments more in this scenario, but Ali ultimately is just the better boxer, and still winds up winning via late TKO or a Unanimous Decision say 10 rounds to 5 or 9 rounds to 6 or something like that.

Much tougher, more grueling fight for him though.

It's not like Ali is an idiot who is just gonna lay on the ropes, and insist on using this strategy even if it's not working.

Ali would win. He was smarter and tougher. It would just be a later round when Liston quit.

Ambling Alp II wrote: ↑26 Aug 2019, 15:35 Ali would win. He was smarter and tougher. It would just be a later round when Liston quit.

This is about how I sum it up as well.

BoxBuzz wrote: ↑27 Aug 2019, 12:24

Ambling Alp II wrote: ↑26 Aug 2019, 15:35 Ali would win. He was smarter and tougher. It would just be a later round when Liston quit.

This is about how I sum it up as well.

Me too.