60th anniversary: Ali-Chuvalo I

[writehooks]

Sixty years ago tonight, Canadian heavyweight champion George Chuvalo became the first challenger to take world titleholder Muhammad Ali the 15-round distance in front of a packed house at Maple Leaf Gardens in Toronto. Chuvalo took the fight on just 17 days' notice after Earnie Terrell pulled out, and he gave the hometown fans plenty to cheer about with a courageous that Sports Illustrated dubbed "A Battle of the Lionhearted." Chuvalo is still with us at age 88, albeit bedridden and suffering from acute dementia in a Toronto facility.

[Ambling Alp II]

Chuvalo had no hope of winning this fight, (not that anyone else would have either) but he kept trying. He really had an interesting career. He fought for a long time against a lot of really good fighters.

[BroughtonRulesRefuge]

- Put Ali in the Hospital while Chuvalo went out dancing with his wife.

21 yr old Foreman finished Chuvalo inside 3 rounds.
Smokin' Joe finished Chuvalo in 4.

Chuvalo was a fighter's fighter who fought just about everyone of note...

[witherspoon]

Bob Arum has a very interesting (and funny) anecdote about this fight.

Apparently Chuvalo's management approached him with a question "what does Chuvalo need to do to win this fight?" (as in "how can you accommodate us in a mutual understanding and guarantee our man an advantage).

Arum claims that he was so green at this time (first major promotion, I believe?) that the implication went totally over his head and he answered sarcastically that "the only way Chuvalo wins is if he hits Ali in the balls!".

According to Arum, the consequences of this misunderstanding slowly dawned on him as the fight progressed and Ali was taking a beating down south.

I can't remember where I heard this, possibly Ken Burns' documentary?

[Caractacus]