Muhammad Ali's exile

[TysonBomb]

What if Ali's license wasn't suspended and he wasn't stripped of his titles? How would his career have turned out? What does his resume look like and what would his legacy be?

Most believe he was just entering his prime when he was forced out of boxing for those 3 years ... and we all know he wasn't the same after he returned.

He is a consensus top 5 heavyweight in history with a strong case of being the best heavyweight ever.

[TBear]

What if Ali's license wasn't suspended and he wasn't stripped of his titles? How would his career have turned out? What does his resume look like and what would his legacy be?

Most believe he was just entering his prime when he was forced out of boxing for those 3 years ... and we all know he wasn't the same after he returned.

He is a consensus top 5 heavyweight in history with a strong case of being the best heavyweight ever.

Top five????

[Ray Corso]

He was robbed of three prime years and could have had great wins but know one knows that. His style and willingness to win keeps him in second place as to being able to win with Joe Louis in first place. Its about who could overcome or dominate to get a win sometimes talent and "one of a kind" skills get beat! He polarized boxing and drew the most excitment to the sport like Joe Louis did! Jack Johnson, Dempsey, Louis and Ali were the big dogs when it comes to generating new fans to the sport, all for different reasons too! Ray

[AntonTheMeh]

tough to say really. physically there's no question that he was in his prime, but we don't know the type what type of esteem some like frazier would have had if ali had the title in a choke hold.

[Scott9945]

He was robbed of three prime years and could have had great wins but know one knows that. His style and willingness to win keeps him in second place as to being able to win with Joe Louis in first place. Its about who could overcome or dominate to get a win sometimes talent and "one of a kind" skills get beat! He polarized boxing and drew the most excitment to the sport like Joe Louis did! Jack Johnson, Dempsey, Louis and Ali were the big dogs when it comes to generating new fans to the sport, all for different reasons too! Ray

I know you hate Mike Tyson, but can't you at least concede that he brought a lot of fans to the sport? In that regard he was as big a dog as the others you mentioned.

[rightsideup]

It would have nice to have seen ALI in his physical prime. As far a Tyson I do not think Ray means him no direspect but he was never the same after lossing kevin Rooney and his team he lost his ability to be elusive which was very underated as people only saw him as a ko machine. I saw his first fight with Rudduck and I noticed his defence was not as good. The boxer of the 80s was sugar ray leonard not tyson as far popularity.

[TysonBomb]

Ali and Tyson are the two most popular boxers ever, with Ali being a candidate for being the most popular athlete ever.

Leonard is not even close ... not even in America.

Ray is not a hater btw ... and this isn't a Tyson thread

But its true that people don't realize that it was Mike's head movement that set him up for those spectacular KOs.

[Ray Corso]

I don't hate Mike Tyson but I don't wear a brown nose about him either! I met Mike when he was 14 years old I handled his corner a bunch of times with Cus and Teddy Atlas. I was the team coach in Colo. Springs Olympic Center when Mike and my son represented the Region 1 section of the country. I root for Mike as a person first, he hurt alot of people that trusted him and worked hard for him. He was taught to act respectfull and conduct himself as a man! After Cus and Jummy passed he turned on the people who cared and decided that Don King was a better man than Cayton and he was wrong.
As for Tyson the fighter we knew what would be the tests and many of us thought he wouldn't handle the situation well. That is an opponent who won't be afraid of all the false bravado and will work to back Mike up and take it to him. We saw a young man come in for sparring and after a day of doing poorly decided to fight Mike off. The kid was asked to leave the next day..............! You see I was there, you weren't. You don't know Mike you know nothing of him you know the false bravado not the boy who grew into a fragile man. What I'm stating is no secret everyone who knew or knows Mike well will say the same things. To continue to talk like he was the greatest fighter there ever was just gets silly after a while. He beat the guys he was suposed to beat and won and lost with the guys who were his "equals" or better!
Yes Tyson helped bring people to boxing but you (scott) haven't read about or experienced the emotions and interests the other men I mentioned brought with them. Jack Johnson was a black man fighting and beating white men at a time that marked him as a dead man, he was extrordinary to stay alive. Dempsey was the "biggest" star atlete of his time, more than Babe Ruth was!! Ali's face was the most recognized face in the "World" then! Joe Louis had more weight on him then any boxer ever, and he answered the call with an outstanding performance the made the country stand together as one!!

Its fine to be a Tyson fan and have his name in your signature/avitar but I knew Tyson and you didn't so my opinions are based on reality and yours on false bravado and press conferences. To you he's a killer and the best of all time to me he's just Sunny, I wish I could have helped him. Ray Corso

[Sugarj]

What if Ali's license wasn't suspended and he wasn't stripped of his titles? How would his career have turned out? What does his resume look like and what would his legacy be?

Most believe he was just entering his prime when he was forced out of boxing for those 3 years ... and we all know he wasn't the same after he returned.

He is a consensus top 5 heavyweight in history with a strong case of being the best heavyweight ever.

Back on topic, yea we'd have seen some good wins in the late 60s.

I don't doubt that in 1968 Ali would have met Frazier. At that point Ali would probably have too much for him and Frazier wouldn't have built up enough resentment to drive him as he was in 1971. Ali would have also defended over the likes of Quarry, Patterson, Martin, Ellis, Bonavena.....possibly even Liston again. Unlikely that he'd lose to any of them!

Ali would have eventually lost though, my money would have been on Ken Norton. If Ali was unmotivated for Norton after his exile outside of fantasy thread land, how stale/overconfident would he be if he'd been defending his titles all those years?

[Scott9945]

I don't hate Mike Tyson but I don't wear a brown nose about him either! I met Mike when he was 14 years old I handled his corner a bunch of times with Cus and Teddy Atlas. I was the team coach in Colo. Springs Olympic Center when Mike and my son represented the Region 1 section of the country. I root for Mike as a person first, he hurt alot of people that trusted him and worked hard for him. He was taught to act respectfull and conduct himself as a man! After Cus and Jummy passed he turned on the people who cared and decided that Don King was a better man than Cayton and he was wrong.
As for Tyson the fighter we knew what would be the tests and many of us thought he wouldn't handle the situation well. That is an opponent who won't be afraid of all the false bravado and will work to back Mike up and take it to him. We saw a young man come in for sparring and after a day of doing poorly decided to fight Mike off. The kid was asked to leave the next day..............! You see I was there, you weren't. You don't know Mike you know nothing of him you know the false bravado not the boy who grew into a fragile man. What I'm stating is no secret everyone who knew or knows Mike well will say the same things. To continue to talk like he was the greatest fighter there ever was just gets silly after a while. He beat the guys he was suposed to beat and won and lost with the guys who were his "equals" or better!
Yes Tyson helped bring people to boxing but you (scott) haven't read about or experienced the emotions and interests the other men I mentioned brought with them. Jack Johnson was a black man fighting and beating white men at a time that marked him as a dead man, he was extrordinary to stay alive. Dempsey was the "biggest" star atlete of his time, more than Babe Ruth was!! Ali's face was the most recognized face in the "World" then! Joe Louis had more weight on him then any boxer ever, and he answered the call with an outstanding performance the made the country stand together as one!!

Its fine to be a Tyson fan and have his name in your signature/avitar but I knew Tyson and you didn't so my opinions are based on reality and yours on false bravado and press conferences. To you he's a killer and the best of all time to me he's just Sunny, I wish I could have helped him. Ray Corso

You knowing Mike Tyson when he was 14 is irrelevant to this topic. I'm not a Tyson fan, but I don't blind myself to reality. I've been in the MGM Grand when Mike entered as a fan, and the response was thunderous. You can't honestly say that Tyson didn't bring in countless new fans when I've heard from many of them for years now. Over and over I hear how "Mike Tyson got me into boxing". You hear that from young fighters as well. I absolutely hate Oscar De La Hoya, but don't deny that he brought in new fans as well (on a smaller level).