This Day in History (October 30, 1974)
By Aaron Tallent October 30th, 2006Today in Boxing History: Ali KOs George Foreman in Zaire
On this day in 1974, Muhammad Ali won the heavyweight title for a second time, knocking out George Foreman in the eighth round in Kinshasa, Zaire.
After losing “The Fight of the Century� to Joe Frazier, Ali began another quest for the heavyweight title, taking on all comers. Between the first Frazier fight and his bout with Foreman, Ali went 13-1. His only loss was a split decision to Ken Norton, in which he fought part of the bout with a broken jaw.
In January of 1974, Ali beat Frazier by unanimous decision in a title elimination bout, earning a shot with Foreman. “Big George� was once considered invincible and had earned that designation by savagely taking the heavyweight title from Frazier in 1973 and stopping Norton 974. Both fights lasted less than two rounds each.
When Ali signed to fight Foreman for the bout titled “The Rumble in the Jungle� many were concerned for his well-being. When the fight started, Ali made good on his pre-fight promise to dance, but Foreman kept in step with him. In the second round, Ali shocked the sportswriters, the crowd, and even his handlers, by going to the ropes and letting Foreman land body punches. When Foreman tired, Ali responded with a flurry of jabs. The pattern continued for the next five rounds.
Finally, at the end of eighth round, an exhausted Foreman had his opponent pinned against the ropes when Ali responded with a left-right combination. Foreman pirouetted to the canvas and was counted out with 2:58 left in the round.
Ali held the title until 1978, when he lost it and regained it from Leon Spinks. After losing to Jimmy Young in 1977, Foreman had religious experience and gave up boxing to become a Christian preacher. He returned to the ring in 1987 and in 1994, became the oldest heavyweight champion in history when he knocked out Michael Moorer at the age of 45.
October 30th, 2006 at 11:24 am
What else can be said about these two that hasn’t already been said? Both were more beloved after suffering losses than before, with Foreman becoming Champion of the World 20 years after losing to Ali! Ali beat the seemingly invincible Foreman after putting an EMBARRASSING ass-kicking on the Federal Government. Ali is not only the most important athlete ever, he’s the most famous PERSON in the world! And George (at 60 yrs old) could still fight if he so chose, and you’d all watch because for whatever flaws he has, he still has knockout power in his right hand! Both are STINKING RICH. Muhammad Ali just sold the rights to his name for millions of dollars and we won’t even MENTION the boatloads of money George Foreman’s grills garner him. This may have been the most significant boxing match in HISTORY, not just sports history, but WORLD HISTORY. Tell your kids about it.
March 16th, 2008 at 9:20 am
It’s such a pity no boxers have risen to be as great as these two boxers (and their contemporaries). Tyson was there, Hollyfield and Lewis, but they were never as electrifying as Ali and Foreman. Ali is perhaps the bravest man in the ring, fighting with a broken jaw and still losing only via split decision. When he said he was the greatest, he said it right. However, Foreman is perhaps second to him.
Now, the popularity of heavyweight boxing is being outshone by Pacquiao and Marquez. Marquez is like Ali, very intelligent in the ring, and Pacquiao, very powerful, like Foreman.
If there were a time machine that could bring back Tyson, Hollyfield and Lewis (I’m mentioning them because they have been the best in this era), Foreman would knock them down, and Ali would sting like a bee and float like a butterfly around them.
Perhaps Ali and Foreman were the last of their kind in heavyweight boxing. I hope not.