Versus Ali
It was in the above greatly diminished physical condition that Williams fought for the heavyweight championship against Muhammad Ali on November 14, 1966 and was stopped in the third round. The match has been described by historians as Ali's greatest fight. Ali himself, interviewed much later on TV in 1976, by Reg Gutteridge OBE said he felt his own 3rd Frazier win was his own best as 'Frazier was much rougher and tougher'. Williams retired from boxing after the Ali bout, but later made a comeback. Although able to defeat journeymen fighters, he suffered several knockout losses before retiring for good in 1972. Williams finished his career with a record of 78 wins (58 KOs), 13 losses and 1 draw. In 2003, he was ranked 49th in Ring Magazine's list of 100 greatest punchers of all time. Ring Magazine in the 80's reported he drove a forklift truck later for a while as a job.
In 1999, Cleveland Williams was killed in a hit and run accident.
Read more about this topic: Cleveland Williams
Famous quotes containing the word ali:
“That was always the difference between Muhammad Ali and the rest of us. He came, he saw, and if he didn’t entirely conquer—he came as close as anybody we are likely to see in the lifetime of this doomed generation.”
—Hunter S. Thompson (b. 1939)