Muhammad Ali

The friendliest place on the web for anyone that follows U2.
If you have answers, please help by responding to the unanswered posts.
I searched the bowels of the sports threads and this is what I found.

Doesn't look good for The Greatest. I haven't really given much of a shit about boxing in years, but obviously, if or when Ali passes, boxing will have lost a true original.
 
Not much affected by it. He played a shitty sport. He was good at it. Whatever. I'm too young to have seen him in his prime.

But I'm sad for his family, of course.
 
I'm a total asshole...don't know why my first reaction was "I'm not affected by it"...I clearly am because I keep coming back to this thread. My bad.

I do think boxing sucks but I am sad about his passing.

Michael Mann's film is very good.
 
The guy gave up his career and championship title in his prime to protest the Vietnam War, and was banned for years from the sport for his pacifist beliefs.

Think about that. Jordan left basketball at his peak to play baseball in an act of hubris.

The gulf speaks volumes.
 
The greatest, and consider he didn't box for four years during his prime. The fights with Frazier and Foreman are legendary.
 
Boxing gave Ali a living, but it also took his life. He suffered for decades with Parkinson's. With the exception of possibly Floyd Mayweather, there is no one today who compares to the personality of Ali.

RIP Ali. :sad:

Floyd Mayweather doesn't even come close.

Ali was considered the most recognizable person in the world for a large portion of his adult life. Not athlete, person. There will never be anyone like him again. he changed boxing with his persona combined with tremendous ability, then he changed the world with his beliefs and his personality. Its a shame that the last quarter century of his life was dominated by Parkinson's and kept him from displaying that personality as he got older.

RIP.
 
lazarus said:
The guy gave up his career and championship title in his prime to protest the Vietnam War, and was banned for years from the sport for his pacifist beliefs. Think about that. Jordan left basketball at his peak to play baseball in an act of hubris. The gulf speaks volumes.

You can't pay your respects without slapping MJ down? Not for nothing, but his playing baseball had as much to do with grieving and coming to terms with his father's murder, I think, as it did anything else.

Anyway, RIP Ali. Unquestionably one of the most influential and recognizable athletes and personalities ever. Not to mention arguably the GOAT boxer.
 
You can't pay your respects without slapping MJ down? Not for nothing, but his playing baseball had as much to do with grieving and coming to terms with his father's murder, I think, as it did anything else.

.

Or avoiding a season long NBA suspension for a gambling scandal that was kept hush hush as a result.
 
"Republicans buy shoes too" -- Michael Jordan's explanation for refusing to endorse a progressive African American candidate running against racist piece of shit Jesse Helms in North Carolina, where Jordan went to school and had much influence.
 
Hewson said:
Or avoiding a season long NBA suspension for a gambling scandal that was kept hush hush as a result.

I know that's a conspiracy theory that's been around forever, but there's no evidence of it being true.
 
lazarus said:
"Republicans buy shoes too" -- Michael Jordan's explanation for refusing to endorse a progressive African American candidate running against racist piece of shit Jesse Helms in North Carolina, where Jordan went to school and had much influence.

I'm not arguing that he's some great person or anything, I'm well aware that he's a very flawed person to say the least, I'm just saying I don't see why you have to sneak in a jab at him in a context that has nothing to do with him.
 
One of our payTV channels just showed the Thriller in Manilla. I'd actually never seen it, didn't know the history or the result cos I'm not into boxing. Utterly amazing viewing.
 
Yeah, that was the first thing I watched. I'm interested in the stories behind boxing, but not the actual sport (think Boom Boom Mancini/Duk Koo Kim, or the weird and wonderful stuff Tyson does in the ring), but that fight, and the story behind how Ali won it is fascinating to watch.

From Wikipedia:

The Ali camp used the championship as leverage in negotiations, and won out on two key points. The ring size of 21 feet (6.4 m) square allowed him the ability to move and circle the ring if he so chose, which would enable him to use his superior boxing skills to his advantage. He also got his preference for 8-ounce (230 g) gloves, which were smaller and less padded than those used in most heavyweight bouts. According to Ali's ring doctor, Ferdie Pacheco, Ali planned to take advantage of Frazier's reputation as a slow starter, and use his superior reach and hand speed to attack Frazier exclusively with punches to the head in the early rounds in the hopes of scoring a knockout, or at least doing enough damage to Frazier to prevent him from fighting effectively as the bout wore on.[9]
 
Back
Top Bottom