BoxRec

elmersalsa wrote: ↑30 Oct 2024, 10:34 Tonight will mark the 50th Year Anniversary of The Rumble in the Jungle of the George Foreman-Muhammad Ali classic fight in Kinshasa, Zaire in Africa.

It was October 30, 1974. George Foreman, the Heavyweight Champion of the World defends his crown against the aging 32-year old and former Heavyweight Champion of the World, Muhammad Ali.

Ali, an 8-1 underdog, did the unthinkable by applying a new strategy called the rope-a-dope. Something that the boxing fans and experts thought that it was suicidal against a man that hit so hard with a record of 40-0, with 37 knockouts.

The way Foreman, age 24, destroyed former champion Joe Frazier in Kingston, Jamaica in January 1973, got the fans worried for Ali in this fight. Some of them thought that if Frazier beat Ali in 1971 in 15 rounds, and Foreman only took 2 rounds against Frazier, that Foreman was going to blow Ali out.

Another guy that beat Ali, Ken Norton, was totally blown out by Big George also in 2 rounds in Caracas, Venezuela earlier in the year in March.

But, somehow and some way, Ali had the crowd on his side. He was the black hero. The sentimental favorite. And by the strength of the crowd, Ali found a lift in spirits to dethrone Foreman in 8 rounds.

It was one of the greatest fights in boxing history. And Ali's greatest win of his career that cemented his greatness as one of boxing's best and perhaps, the greatest heavyweight boxer of all-time.

Your thoughts of this monumental fight. A fight that crossed over to the masses.

Both fighters received $5 million dollars. A record at the time.

Caractacus wrote: ↑08 Mar 2025, 15:14 I hardly think the 50th anniversary of such an historic ocassion got any news publicity ?
BTW Who is still around involving that fight ?
I wonder how many people who attended are still around 50 years later ,
including all the people who had lined along the roads to watch Ali arrive and leave .
Makes you wonder.

elmersalsa wrote: ↑10 Mar 2025, 13:01

Caractacus wrote: ↑08 Mar 2025, 15:14 I hardly think the 50th anniversary of such an historic ocassion got any news publicity ?
BTW Who is still around involving that fight ?
I wonder how many people who attended are still around 50 years later ,
including all the people who had lined along the roads to watch Ali arrive and leave .
Makes you wonder.

Interestingly and ironically, Don King is still alive.

Billy Tully wrote: ↑10 Mar 2025, 16:30 Ferdie pacheco is long dead.

Billy Tully wrote: ↑11 Mar 2025, 09:26 George Foreman's life would make for an epic multi-part drama. They tried to cram everything into a biopic but it didn't work, there's just too much story for a 2-hour movie.

Youth in the Fifth Ward
Job Corp, amateur career & Olympics
Prospect under Liston
Frazier in Jamaica
Norton in Venezuela
The Jungle
Inactivity, then Lyle thru Young
The decade out
The comeback and the media's mockery
Holyfield

That's 10 hour-long eps in it self and we haven't even got to Moorer. Or the grill! An extraordinary life. Glad he's still around.