Muhammad Ali is widely considered the greatest boxer to ever lace the gloves, but his accolades go beyond belts and titles.
Muhammad Ali finished his career with a record of 56-5. He was able to avenge three of his losses.
Ali became champion when he stopped Sonny Liston, who struck fear in America when he dressed as Santa, to claim the heavyweight crown.
He was more than a boxer, though, and was an avid showman able to create captivating speeches and freestyles, such as when doctors became worried about Ali’s heart rate at the Liston press conference as a result of his antics.
His skill in the ring, and his showmanship outside of it, come together for one of the greatest boxers the sport has ever seen, and a man who put together countless nights of entertainment for the fans.
Muhammad Ali vs Joe Frazier was watched by over 300 million people
In 1971, ‘Smokin’ Joe Frazier defied the odds and handed Ali his first professional loss, retaining the world title that Ali was stripped of for refusing the Vietnam War draft.
The fight became known as ‘The Fight of the Century’, and was followed by Ali winning a close but unanimous decision in their rematch.
The famous ‘Thrilla in Manila’ came next where Ali and Frazier fought in the Manila heat for a grueling 14 rounds.
Despite Frazier’s instructions, his trainer called an end to the contest after the 14th round, unbeknownst to the fact Ali had told his trainer to cut his gloves off in his corner at the same time. Ali would reveal that Frazier quit only seconds before he did.
It was the first fight, however, where Frazier beat Ali as the underdog that was watched by over 300 million people around the world, making up just under 10% of the total population of Earth at the time.
Who did Muhammad Ali lose to?
Ali took his first loss to Frazier but also lost four times since. These are the other men who managed to defeat ‘The Greatest’.
In 1973, two years after his first loss to Frazier, Ali was defeated in a split decision by Ken Norton. Ali would rematch Norton twice, defeating him by split decision in their rematch in 1973 and again by unanimous decision three years after that.
Ali reportedly begged George Foreman to come out of retirement to beat Norton for him.
Ali’s next loss, and the only other one he was able to avenge, came towards the end of his career when he lost to Leon Spinks on a split decision. Ali would avenge the loss the same year and win by unanimous decision.
Only two men were able to beat Ali on a unanimous decision, and only one was able to stop the champ.
Ali lost to Larry Holmes in 1980 in the tenth round. Ali, who had already started showing signs of Parkinson’s, was brave in taking the fight, but was beaten convincingly, losing every round to Holmes.
Mike Tyson promised Ali he would defeat Holmes for him, which he did 1988 via fourth round knockout.
The only other man to beat Ali was Trevor Berbick, who bested Ali by unanimous decision in the final fight of his career.