A Boxing Memory: Joe Frazier vs. George Foreman

A Boxing Memory: Joe Frazier vs. George Foreman

Down goes Frazier. Down goes Frazier. Down goes Frazier. Those immortal words from Howard Cosell.

It was an iconic moment. A changing of the heavyweight guard. It was a clash of two undefeated former Olympic champions. Joe Frazier was the reigning heavyweight champion of the world. Unbeaten in twenty-nine fights, Frazier was the heavy betting favourite. The fighter, who in 1971 had become the first fighter to defeat Muhammad Ali, was expected to win. A rematch with Ali was in the works, but when talks ended without an agreement, a fellow Olympic champion was invited to the party.

George Foreman had a frightening reputation. A terrifying puncher with the matching surly moody demeanour modelled on his hero Sonny Liston. Foreman came to boxing with the intent of improving his street fighting skills. It soon morphed into more. Much more. Heading into the fight with Frazier, Foreman had thirty-seven wins, and only three of those fights had gone the full route. But he lacked top-level experience, and there was widespread condemnation and suspicion over the quality of his opposition in those thirty-seven fights. The same old arguments would rage once again, even more furiously, when Foreman launched his improbable comeback many years later.

Frazier had fought by far, the better level of opposition. He had to get off the floor twice to defeat the tough Argentinian Oscar Bonavena in their first meeting and Frazier had also beaten the likes of the previously unbeaten Buster Mathis, Jimmy Ellis, Jerry Quarry and of course, Muhammad Ali on that famous night in New York. The best win on the resume of Foreman was arguably his stoppage win over George Chuvalo in 1970. There was a notable win of sorts earlier in 1970 when he beat a fighter with Superman connections. Jack O’Halloran was predictably stopped in five rounds in their fight in New York. O’Halloran was a journeyman-type heavyweight, but he would later make his name in the acting world by playing the character Non in the Christopher Reeve Superman films.

Foreman turned professional in 1969, the night Frazier headlined the Madison Square Garden card defending his New York State Athletic Commission heavyweight championship against Jerry Quarry. A meeting of the two Olympic champions was always more than a probability. It wasn’t the only time the two heavyweights would share a card.

The odds of 4-1 in favour of the reigning champion reflected popular opinion and a crowd of 36,000 packed into the National Stadium in Kingston, Jamaica. The Sunshine Showdown was expected to be explosive, and it was, just not the way most people expected.

Frazier hadn’t lost a fight of any kind since Buster Mathis outpointed him in the 1964 Olympic Trials. Foreman was the number one ranked heavyweight contender, but he admitted he lacked confidence. “I’m so glad that he didn’t look down because my knees were shaking,” Foreman said of the pre-fight preliminaries.

But Foreman didn’t show any notable nerves as the fight got underway. Very quickly, the expected pre-fight script was ripped up. Frazier was down three times in the opening round, Cosell waxing those ionic words. The bell saved Frazier. But not for long. Foreman told the referee Arthur Mercante to “Stop the fight before I kill him.” After 4 minutes 35 seconds and three more knockdowns in the second round, he did.

There was no rematch clause. Imagine that today. Frazier would have to wait for his chance of revenge. When it came, it came too late in the day. Frazier had twice lost to Ali, and he was nowhere near what he once was when he faced Foreman again. The blistering heat of Manila and fourteen rounds of trading punches with Ali saw to that. Frazier lasted a little longer in their 1976 rematch, but after five rounds, it was the same result. Retirement followed, at least for then. Five years after his second defeat to Foreman, Frazier returned and fought out an uninspiring draw with Floyd ‘Jumbo’ Cummings and then retired for good.

Foreman followed his upset win over Frazier with wins over Jose Roman and Ken Norton. Thirty rounds were scheduled for those two fights. Only three rounds were needed. But then Foreman went to Zaire in 1974 and found an Ali who was too good for him. After another loss to Jimmy Young in 1977, Foreman found God and didn’t fight again for ten years. Against Michael Moorer in 1994, Foreman found a miracle.