Muhammad Ali and Cleveland Williams fought each other in a boxing match at the Astrodome in Houston, Texas on November 14, 1966. Ali won the bout through a technical knockout in the third round. Many experts and boxers, including Mike Tyson, regard Ali's performance in this fight to be the finest of his boxing career. This was also the fight in which Ali made famous the move he called the "Ali shuffle".[2][3][4][5]
On the evening of November 29, 1964, 2 years before the fight, Williams was shot in the stomach by a highway patrolman, for supposedly resisting arrest. The .357 magnum bullet moved across his intestines and lodged in his right hip, doing immense damage to his colon and right kidney. He underwent four operations over the next 7 months which resulted in the eventual removal of his right kidney and a loss of 60 pounds, which he later recovered by doing weight-lifting. Williams later said that "I died three times on that operating table." The bullet left vestigial damage: a partial paralysis of some hip muscles and a severely weakened right hip joint. Despite this incident, Williams returned to the ring in 1966 and won four consecutive fights before facing Ali.[6]
In heavy contrast to Williams, Ali came into this fight in peak physical shape. He successfully defended his WBC, NYSAC and The Ring heavyweight titles against Karl Mildenberger of Germany on September 10, 1966, after also beating 5 heavyweight contenders, including Henry Cooper, Floyd Patterson and Sonny Liston, in the years prior. By the time of the Williams fight, Ali had great success with his "stick and move" style: employing a strong left jab, to whittle down his opponents, and a low guard, allowing him to anticipate and dodge incoming punches. Ali's 2-year dominance in the heavyweight division made him a 5 to 1 favorite going into this fight.
ReferencesEdit
^ abKirkby, Evans (February 25, 1964). "Howling Ali fined $2,500 for his antics at weigh-in". Milwaukee Journal. p. 11.
^Thomas Hauser (1991). Muhammad Ali: His Life and Times. Simon & Schuster. pp. 158–61.
^Felix Dennis; Don Atyeo (2003). Muhammad Ali: The Glory Years. miramax books. p. 150.
^"YOU WATCH OUT, ALI!". Sports Illustrated. 14 November 1966. Retrieved 6 October 2016.
^"Greatest Knockouts: Ali vs. Williams". ESPN. 28 September 2006. Retrieved 6 October 2016.
^"Muhammad Ali vs. Cleveland Williams". BoxRec. Retrieved 30 January 2021.
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muhammad, cleveland, williams, muhammad, cleveland, williams, fought, each, other, boxing, match, astrodome, houston, texas, november, 1966, bout, through, technical, knockout, third, round, many, experts, boxers, including, mike, tyson, regard, performance, t. Muhammad Ali and Cleveland Williams fought each other in a boxing match at the Astrodome in Houston Texas on November 14 1966 Ali won the bout through a technical knockout in the third round Many experts and boxers including Mike Tyson regard Ali s performance in this fight to be the finest of his boxing career This was also the fight in which Ali made famous the move he called the Ali shuffle 2 3 4 5 Muhammad Ali vs Cleveland WilliamsDateNovember 14 1966VenueAstrodomeHouston TexasTitle s on the lineWBC NYSAC and The Ring heavyweight titlesTale of the tapeBoxerMuhammad AliCleveland WilliamsNicknameThe GreatestBig CatHometownLouisville KentuckyGriffin GeorgiaPre fight record26 0 065 5 1Height6 ft 3 in 191cm 6 ft 2 in 188cm Weight212 3 4 lb 97 kg 1 210 1 2 lb 95 kg 1 RecognitionWBC NYSAC and The Ring heavyweight championNoneResultAli wins via 3rd round TKOBackground EditOn the evening of November 29 1964 2 years before the fight Williams was shot in the stomach by a highway patrolman for supposedly resisting arrest The 357 magnum bullet moved across his intestines and lodged in his right hip doing immense damage to his colon and right kidney He underwent four operations over the next 7 months which resulted in the eventual removal of his right kidney and a loss of 60 pounds which he later recovered by doing weight lifting Williams later said that I died three times on that operating table The bullet left vestigial damage a partial paralysis of some hip muscles and a severely weakened right hip joint Despite this incident Williams returned to the ring in 1966 and won four consecutive fights before facing Ali 6 In heavy contrast to Williams Ali came into this fight in peak physical shape He successfully defended his WBC NYSAC and The Ring heavyweight titles against Karl Mildenberger of Germany on September 10 1966 after also beating 5 heavyweight contenders including Henry Cooper Floyd Patterson and Sonny Liston in the years prior By the time of the Williams fight Ali had great success with his stick and move style employing a strong left jab to whittle down his opponents and a low guard allowing him to anticipate and dodge incoming punches Ali s 2 year dominance in the heavyweight division made him a 5 to 1 favorite going into this fight References Edit a b Kirkby Evans February 25 1964 Howling Ali fined 2 500 for his antics at weigh in Milwaukee Journal p 11 Thomas Hauser 1991 Muhammad Ali His Life and Times Simon amp Schuster pp 158 61 Felix Dennis Don Atyeo 2003 Muhammad Ali The Glory Years miramax books p 150 YOU WATCH OUT ALI Sports Illustrated 14 November 1966 Retrieved 6 October 2016 Greatest Knockouts Ali vs Williams ESPN 28 September 2006 Retrieved 6 October 2016 Muhammad Ali vs Cleveland Williams BoxRec Retrieved 30 January 2021 nbsp This boxing related article is a stub You can help Wikipedia by expanding it vte Retrieved from https en wikipedia org w index php title Muhammad Ali vs Cleveland Williams amp oldid 1153481168, wikipedia, wiki, book, books, library,
