Aspects of the Game (3) Rebounding

Aspects of the Game (2) Passing

Aspects of the Game (1) Shooting

Muhammad Ali vs Joe Frazier III (October 1st 1975)

The first bout between Frazier and Ali took place on March 8, 1971, in New York's Madison Square Garden. Frazier was the champion and won by unanimous decision over previously undefeated Ali in a fast-paced, 15-round bout, with Frazier scoring the fight's (and trilogy's) only knockdown, at the beginning of the final round.

When the rivals met in a January 1974 rematch, neither was champion; Frazier had suffered a second round knockout at the hands of George Foreman a year earlier and Ali had split two bouts with Ken Norton. In a promotional appearance before the second fight, the two had gotten into a scuffle in an ABC studio during an interview segment with Howard Cosell. In the second round, Ali stung Frazier with a hard right hand, which backed him up. Referee Tony Perez stepped between the fighters, signifying the end of the round, even though there were about 25 seconds left. In so doing, he gave Frazier time to regain his bearings and continue fighting. Perez also failed to contain Ali's tactic of illegally holding and pulling down his opponent's neck in the clinches, which helped Ali to smother Frazier, and gain him the 12-round decision. This became a major issue in selecting the referee for the Manila bout.

Reference: Thrilla in Manila

Muhammad Ali vs Joe Frazier II (January 28th 1974)

Held in between their two title bouts, The Fight of the Century in 1971 and The Thrilla in Manila in 1975, this second fight was scheduled for twelve rounds. Promoted as Super Fight II, it was considered by many fans and experts to be the least significant and interesting fight of their rivalry. One columnist described it as a contest between two "former champions, both beaten, both past their best". Nonetheless, Ali wanted to avenge his loss to Frazier in their first fight, and a world title try at Heavyweight champion George Foreman, who had dethroned Frazier, was at stake. Their first and third fights became part of boxing's lore, but some viewers considered the second fight to be entertaining as well.

Reference: Super Fight

Muhammad Ali vs Joe Frazier I (March 8th 1971)

In 1971, both Ali and Frazier had legitimate claims to the title of World Heavyweight Champion. An undefeated Ali had won the title from Sonny Liston in Miami Beach in 1964, and successfully defended his belt up until he had it stripped by boxing authorities for refusing induction into the armed forces in 1967. In Ali's absence, the undefeated Frazier garnered two championship belts through knockouts of Buster Mathis and Jimmy Ellis. He was recognized by boxing authorities as the World Champion. Unlike Mathis and Ellis, Frazier was plausibly Ali's superior, which created a tremendous amount of hype and anticipation for a match pitting the two undefeated fighters against one another to decide who was the true heavyweight champ.

Ringside seats were $150, each man was guaranteed 2.5 million dollars, in addition to the millions who watched on closed-circuit screens around the world. The Garden was packed with a sellout crowd of 20,455 that provided a gate of $1.5 million.

Prior to his enforced layoff, Ali had displayed uncommon speed and dexterity for a man of his size. He had dominated most of his opponents to the point that he had often predicted the round in which he would knock them out. However, in the fight preceding the Frazier fight, Ali struggled at times during his 15th round TKO of Oscar Bonavena, an unorthodox Argentinian fighter who was prepared by Hall of Fame trainer, Gil Clancy.

Frazier had an outstanding left hook, and was a tenacious competitor who attacked the body of his opponent ferociously. Despite suffering from a serious bout of hypertension in the lead-up to the fight, he appeared to be in top form as the face-off between the two undefeated champions approached.

The fight held broader meaning for many Americans, as Ali had become a symbol of the left-wing anti-establishment movement during his government-imposed exile from the ring, while Frazier had been adopted by the conservative, pro-war movement. According to the 2009 documentary Thriller in Manila, the match, which had been dubbed "The Fight", "gripped the nation, but also split it down the middle. If you were rooting for Ali you were black, liberal or young, against Vietnam and for the Civil Rights movement. If you backed Joe Frazier you were a representative of white, conservative America."

"Just listen to the roar of this crowd!" thundered Burt Lancaster, the play-by-play man. "The tension, and the excitement here, is monumental!"

Reference: Fight of the Century