Muhammad Ali fought in some of the greatest boxing matches of all time, but there was one exhibition fight of his that most people will want to forget.
Whether it was his “Thrilla in Manila” against George Foreman or the famous upset victory over Sonny Liston in 1964, no fights captivated the public’s imagination quite like Muhammad Ali’s.
The American boxer dominated the sport with three world heavyweight titles and countless impressive victories to his name as he became one of the most well-known people in the world.
However, one professional wrestling legend wanted to try and prove that his sport was better than Ali’s.
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Muhammad Ali fought Antonio Inoki in a ‘boxer vs wrestler’ superfight
1976 saw Ali appear in his most bizarre fight yet, in return for a reported $6 million payday. This fight was organized by New Japan Pro Wrestling founder Antonio Inoki, who was a keen martial artist who regularly tested himself against real fighters.
The biggest one of all was Ali, the iconic heavyweight champion who was arguably the most famous sportsman in the world. He agreed to a fight with Inoki in Tokyo on June 26, 1976, in what was billed as “The War of the Worlds”.
Despite professional wrestling being a fixed sport, this fight would be legitimate, as Ali found out to his surprise when he asked Inoki when they’d be rehearsing the bout.
The rules of the bout differed from both boxing and professional wrestling. It was fought under specially created rules, disallowing any throws, grapples, or tackles, and not allowing Inoki to kick Ali without one knee on the mat.
These rules were not made public, but were so different from both men’s primary sport that the fight became something else altogether.
There were huge criticisms of these new rules after the fight, as it became clear that it had killed it as a contest. Inoki spent most of the bout on his back, kicking at the ankles of Ali to avoid being punched by the world champion boxer.
Fans were furious and rioted in the Tokyo’s Nippon Budokan Hall after the bout had been declared a draw, although that was more about the quality of the contest as opposed to seeing either Ali or Inoki fail to win.
Ali suffered an injury to his legs from the constant kicks by Inoki, which proved to be a lot worse than it looked.
His mobility was severely restricted by the injuries caused, and he never recovered the speed and explosiveness as a fighter again.
However, things almost went a lot, lot worse for the boxing legend.
Muhammad Ali’s coach claimed his leg almost had to be amputated
Ali almost had his leg amputated due to the dangerous kicks from Inoki, his coach claimed in the years since the doomed fight.
In a 2009 interview with The Guardian, Ali’s coach, Bob Arum, admitted that the “terrible” fight caused Ali to get an infection, which almost forced him to have his leg cut off.
Arum said: “So fine, OK. It was terrible, it was embarrassing. But Ali is bleeding from the legs. He gets an infection in his legs and almost has to have an amputation.
“Not only the [Ken] Norton fight would’ve been not happening, but Ali could’ve been a cripple for the rest of his life.”
Ali fought seven more times before retiring for good after the Inoki match, but never knocked out another man again.