THEY called it the ‘Fight of the Century’ before a punch had even been thrown. Someone must have known.
In time, Muhammad Ali and Joe Frazier would become inextricably linked, the phrase ‘Ali-Frazier’ stitched into the boxing glossary forever, but ahead of their first fight on March 8, 1971 at Madison Square Garden, nobody could have predicted how the pair would get along. They didn’t know whether their styles would mesh or that the fight would be competitive. They didn’t know which of the two would walk away with the WBA and WBC heavyweight titles and which of the two would be the first to have their undefeated record spoiled. They certainly couldn’t have had any firm belief that the first fight would then lead to a rematch and eventually a trilogy.
Fifteen rounds, one knockdown and three scorecards later, however, and the world had a better idea.
Despite its obvious drawbacks, one upside of missing a classic fight live but watching it long after it happened is that you have an even greater appreciation of the quality on show, due primarily to the fact it can be compared with what followed, its impact now established. In the case of Ali vs Frazier I, reputations as heavyweight greats only flourished in the ensuing years.
