Thrilla In Manila: 40 years on from sanctioned manslaughter in boxing

Listening to radio talk sport about this event and both men nearly killing one another and going through sheer exhaustion to beat one another.

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Thrilla In Manila: 40 years on from sanctioned manslaughter in boxing | Kevin Mitchell | Sport | The Guardian

For the purposes of commerce, showbusiness and Don King’s love of mangled rhymes, it was called the Thrilla In Manila. In reality, the third, final and quite frightening fight between Muhammad Ali and Joe Frazier, on this day 40 years ago, ought to be remembered as The Fight Too Far.

Both came to the battle weary, aged and struggling to contain self-delusion. They left damaged and irreparably bitter. Ali won, famously, when Frazier’s kind and wise trainer, Eddie Futch, refused to let him go out for the 15th round, exhausted and near-blind.

But the contest lingered verbally way after the bell, all the way to Joe’s grave. This most noble of fighters struggled properly to forgive Ali for some of the most hurtful insults ever hurled in the name of sporting hype, and convinced himself in repeated assertions to anyone who’d listen that he could have survived one more round.

In that respect, Frazier did win. He won respect for his courage and sympathy for his plight as Ali’s plaything, the straight man in a joke he never understood. Joe sweated blood and dignity in equal measure.

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This is the fight that got me into boxing. My dad told me about it so I bought the VHS and I've loved boxing ever since.

Both fighters were older and so just battered one another more than they would normally have done. They just wanted to win at all cost.

The heat was another factor that day.

Looking back at that fight and some of the other equally brutal and may I say homicidal fights in history it is very clear to all of us that the fighters of the past were much tougher and dogged and determined to go through hell for 15 or 20 rounds and lay their soul on the line and give it their all and push themselves beyond their human limits ---compared to the prima donnas and the half-hearted and the lackluster and mediocre fighters that we have today. Anyone who disputes that fact is simply being a contrarian for the sake of being a contrarian or for the sake of trying to look open minded by putting on an air of supposed and alleged fairness to modern Fighters.
I guess it is really cool to tell yourself that you have gotten old now and that you are simply delusional in your old age to think that the fighters of yesteryear were tougher and more determined and stronger and had greater heart and greater willingness to suffer and to fight and push themselves beyond their human capacity.
I guess its cool. Whatever floats your boat.

Besides Evander Holyfield I really can't think of any Fighters of the past 20 or 30 years at least in the heavyweight division who had that kind of warrior spirit that Muhammad Ali and Joe Frazier had.

Interesting Thought

In the bout before "The Thrilla In Manila"

Muhammad Ali couldn't do a thing with Joe Bugner.

Yea he won, but he 'stunk out the joint'.

Quote:

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Originally Posted by Bill Paxtom

Interesting Thought

In the bout before "The Thrilla In Manila"

Muhammad Ali couldn't do a thing with Joe Bugner.

Yea he won, but he 'stunk out the joint'.

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A lot of your threads and posts stink out the entire forum Bill. I wouldn't worry too much about it.