Remember, remember the 1st of October.
1975. The Marcos regime is entering Year 3 of the Martial Law-era. To save face from international scrutiny, President Ferdinand Marcos and his advisers pushed hard to host the rubber match between the WBC/WBA Heavyweight Champion Undisputed World Heavyweight Champion Muhammad Ali, then 48-2 (35 KO), and Joe Frazier, 32–2 (27 KO).
The first bout, dubbed as the Fight of the Century (March, 1971), saw Frazier hand Ali his first career loss in taking a Unanimous Decision win in New York City. Ali-Frazier II (Super Fight II) happened three years later in the same venue with Ali taking a, what some would say, a controversial decision win.
The Build-Up
“It will be a killer and a chiller and a thriller when I get the gorilla in Manila,” the 33 year old Ali’s prophetic prediction of the bout.
“It’s real hatred!” Frazier declared. “I don’t want to knock him out, I want to hurt him. If I knock him down, I’ll stand back and give him a chance to breathe. It’s his heart I want.”
Frazier’s metaphor about his relationship with Ali prior to the rubber match. “If we were twins in the belly of our mama, I’d reach over and strangle him.”
The Aftermath
“He could have whooped any fighter in the world, except me,” Ali said about the 14th round TKO win. “He is great, greater than I thought. He is one hell of a fighter and it was one hell of a fight.”
But still Frazier resented his rival. “They want me to love him, but I’ll open up the graveyard and bury his ass.”
Years, Decades Later
“Twenty years, I’ve been fighting Ali and I still want to take him apart piece by piece and send him back to Jesus,” Frazier in 1995.
As the years went by, the bitterness in Frazier slowly faded. “There were bruises in my heart because of the words he used. I spent years dreaming about him and wanting to hurt him but you have got to throw that stick out of the window. Do not forget that we needed each other to produce some of the greatest fights of all time.”
As Ali turned into a humanitarian during his later years, he admitted that he regretted the way he sold his fights. “I’m sorry Joe Frazier is mad at me, I’m sorry that I hurt him. Joe Frazier is a good man and I couldn’t have done what I did without him,” Ali reflected when Frazier passed away in 2011.
“If God ever calls me to Holy War, I want Joe Frazier fighting beside me.”
The Legacy
Of course, there’s Ali Mall in Cubao City. “We didn’t pay him a thing [for the use of his name],” Joe Fores, a grandson of J. Amado Araneta, told Rogue.ph. “Ali said he was just grateful to be honored.”
Renowned sporting publications considered this bout as the Greatest Fight of All Time, including Sports Illustrated, ESPN, Los Angeles Times, among others.
Living sporting icons have also paid tribute to the bout including the Golden State Warriors’ Stephen Curry during his Road Show Tour.
But “The Greatest” summed it up best in saying, “We went to Manila as champions, Joe and me. We came back as old men.”
Rest in Peace, Champs.
Sources:
Various YouTube clips
BreakingNews.ie
SkySports
