Muhammad Ali is one of the greatest boxers to ever lace up the gloves, not only due to his own skills, but due to the mindset of his trainer, Angelo Dundee.
Muhammad Ali retired after losing three of his final four fights. He first lost to Leon Spinks via split decision before beating him in their rematch, and then tasted defeat twice more against Larry Holmes (who Mike Tyson KO’d) and Trevor Berbick.
It was one fight before his fall from grace, which saw Ali, who was stopped aged 16, win his fourteenth consecutive victory since his loss to Ken Norton.
Muhammad Ali beat Earnie Shavers after his trainer spotted a trick ahead of their bout
In 1977, Ali, who had failed to intimidate Jean Pierre Coopman, faced 54-5-1 Earnie Shavers, a prolific knockout machine and living legend, in Madison Square Garden, New York.
Ali defeated Shavers via unanimous decision, but had more insight into the fight than he was supposed to as his trainer, Angelo Dundee, took advantage of the broadcasting of the fight to give his man the edge.
According to BoxRec, Dundee had learnt ahead of time that NBC had arranged to show viewers the scores live on TV after each round.
Dundee ensured he had a man in the dressing room watching the fight live on television and relaying the scores back to him, allowing Dundee to adjust the game plan where necessary, and to eventually realize Shavers needed a KO to win.
Angelo Dundee was once in the corner of Muhammad Ali’s opponent
Dundee and Ali had a long-lasting relationship, with Dundee in Ali’s corner for all but two of his fights.
The first was Ali’s debut against Tunney Hunsaker in 1960, but beyond that there was just one fight that Dundee did not corner Ali for.
But it was not only that Dundee didn’t work in Ali’s corner, he worked in his opponent’s corner instead.
Dundee trained Jimmy Ellis and worked his corner for his fight with Ali in 1971. Ali, who sparred Thomas Hearns later in his career, knocked Ellis out in the twelfth round.