Muhammad Ali- Was he the greatest heavyweight?

This looks to be an old thread at this stage, but for me Ali was The Greatest! Muhammad Ali

...Joe Louis never lost a fight in his prime, between ages 24 and 35 inclusive. Muhammed Ali officially lost 2 to Frazier and Norton, at ages 29 and 31 (and perhaps should have lost another 2 or 3 close decisions that were given to him).During Louis' active reign and domination, they coined the frase "bum of the month club" in reference to his efficient disposition of all opponents matched against him. It reminds me of a movie executive taking auditions and dismissing those who fail to qualify by hollerin' "next." In fairness to, and in defense of Ali, it could be argued that he was robbed of his prime by his three-year unjust layoff.

I could be wrong here but didn't Louis beat more hall of famers and more former champions then any other heavyweight ? Ali's still better .That may be true, but in my view, the most impressive stat attributed to Louis is the 25 consecutive succesful defenses of his title, which accounted for the longest reign of a heavyweight champion. During Ali's prime, I too got caught-up in the idea of him being "The Greatest", but as I've grown older, my objectivity has blossomed and today I rate "The Brown Bomber" #1, based solely on his accomplishment(s) inside the ring. Don't get me wrong, in many respects - not the least of which is his stature as a sports icon - Muhammad Ali is and always will be The Greatest. Just not as a fighter.

Its always been clear in my eyes. Ali is the best heavyweight ever. Louis dominated a weaker era. Ali beat some of the best heavyweights ever. There was nothing contraversial about the first Liston fight or the Foreman fight, or the second and third Fraizer fights. All three of those heavyweights are in most peoples top 10. And that doesnt even factor in the other good fighters that he beat. Its no contest imo. I could be wrong here but didn't Louis beat more hall of famers and more former champions then any other heavyweight ? Ali's still better .

Its always been clear in my eyes. Ali is the best heavyweight ever. Louis dominated a weaker era. Ali beat some of the best heavyweights ever. There was nothing contraversial about the first Liston fight or the Foreman fight, or the second and third Fraizer fights. All three of those heavyweights are in most peoples top 10. And that doesnt even factor in the other good fighters that he beat. Its no contest imo.

ali would of beat joe louisYes, but only if he could. ;)

Everyone who said Tyson should be killed with a hammer Ali the Greatest ever no doubt, most of you agree though Tyson is in my top 10 but there is no way he is the best ever . During his prime i think he would have gave anyone ANYONE a hell of a challenge and maybe won 1 out of 3 with the likes of Ali but with his short prime years and lack of other great prime opponents, he left to much unknown.

Everyone who said Tyson should be killed with a hammer Ali the Greatest ever no doubt, most of you agree though

Ali would box his ears off Louis never fought a skilled big man most of the giants he fought were brawlers with little to offer other then size and power. What would Louis do when he can't catch Ali and is being tagged with jabs and powerful over hand rights, round after round ? Louis is known for having good speed, good boxing skills, a good chin, and great power. Ali had all of this other then great power but was better in each other category cept for maybe tech boxing skill. As far as power Ali was no Joe Louis but most of his fights were in fact knock outs , thing is he was so into winning the fight in the round he called he would carry some fights too long and it made it seem that he had little power . Also if Ali was fighting with the smaller gloves of Joe Louis's era he may have been more of a puncher .

Hey, It's good to see that one of my old threads was bumped up; I created this thread in 2004!...:fing02: :biggthump

ali would of beat joe louis

Joe Louis is the best heavyweight of all time then Ali, I've always rated Joe above Ali and will continue to do so

I have recently read several books on some of Muhammad Ali's fights and have discovered that he won alot of controversial decisions over fighters like Ken Norton, Jimmy Young, Ernie Shavers that could have easily gone in their favor. Ali rose to occasion to beat great fighters like Foreman, Frazier, Liston. But he wasn't always consistent, so was he the greatest heavyweight of all time or was it the hype the he built up? I dont think he was as good Louis!!! IMO it was mostly hype!!!

Ali and Louis are definitely 1-2. I rank Ali slightly higher because he beat the best set of opponents of any fighter, ever. And don't forget, Ali lost over 3 years of his prime. Imagine what we'd be saying about him if politics didn't rob the sport he loved from a full, uninterupted career. For speed, ring savy, chin and heart Ali had no match. That's just my opinion, but I'm right. :D i agree...3 years, and also his best years is something we will always regret :( btw, for me ali is the greatest heavywight, but i dont know if he was the best. but definitively on the top 3....without a doubt. i dont know but i think that a prime ali vs a prime lois, marciano, tyson, butterbean, etc.... he should win. well, thats what i think.

in my opinion tyson is da best heavyweight of all time..hes jus old now n so wut if he lost his last 2 fights so did ali i used to think the same thing...but noway ..ali was the greatest by far he had parkinsons and was still beating guys whitch is crazy.. parkinsons slows your motor reflexes .. he may have been ifhgtin with parkinson for over 5 years

Ali was great in that he was well known and admired in and out of the ring... but sadly imma have to go with Joe Louis...

Ali was my favorite heavyweight of all times, but the distinction for being the greatest, goes to one Joseph Louis Barrow.

Dumbest thing I've heard... If you think Louis still being a top contender is the dumbest thing you've heard then you might want to take that opinion up with Ring Magazine or observe their ratings from just before the Marciano/Louis fight (Aug of '51); Champ: Jersey Joe Walcott 1: Ezzard Charles 2: JOE LOUIS 3: Rocky Marciano 4: Clarence Henry 5: Roland LaStarza 6: Bob Baker 7: Rex Layne 8: Cesar Brion 9: Lee Savold 10: Hein Neuhaus What the other guy said was 100% true as evident there!

in my opinion tyson is da best heavyweight of all time..hes jus old now n so wut if he lost his last 2 fights so did ali

ali wasn't great? man you need to watch some of his fights. Thats right he AINT the greatest. I have seen his fights and he doesnt impress me. Just cuz he was in the spot light ALL the time doesnt make him the greatest. Like i said i take nothing away from him, but alot of people just know the name ALi and just think he is the greatest and have never even seen him fight. Look i aint saying that he was a good to great fighter, but to label him as thee Greatest is a stretch. :cool: