Cleveland "Big Cat" Williams Article (Ali, Liston, etc.)

[bluemurder]

Anyone who remembers Cleveland Williams likely does so because of Neil Leifer, SI shutterbug extraordinaire, whose overhead shot of Muhammad Ali strutting triumphantly away from a splayed and seemingly slayed Williams, laid out on a splotchy canvas in the Houston Astrodome like some victim of a drive-by shooting, is considered one of the greatest photographs in sports history. Not only was his loss to Ali (TKO by 3) forever fixed in the collective pop culture psyche of the United States, but Williams unwittingly became a benchmark for an Ali at his absolute peak.

And the Astrodome itself, nicknamed the “Eighth Wonder of the World” for its cutting-edge hemispherical roof and climate-controlled environment, seemed like a symbolic correlative for the encroaching Ali era—the ex-Cassius Clay, now Space Age heavyweight, with never before seen warp speed and gravity-defying agility—way out in some wild future yonder. But on November 14, 1966, the Astrodome was nothing more than an oversized sporting mausoleum for Cleveland Williams. At the time Williams challenged Ali, the “Big Cat” was as threatening as a malnutritioned kitten. He was thirty-three years old, in his fifteenth year as a pro, and a physical wreck after having been shot at point-blank range in a scuffle with a police officer two years earlier.

https://hannibalboxing.com/brief-lives-cleveland-williams/

[Anthony342]

Also known as Cleveland "The Steamer" or The Cleveland Steamer.

[The Old LefHook]

Big, big puncher. On Foreman's list, isn't he?

[Vae Victis]

Here's some history on Williams to put thing into perspective - from Wikipedia:
Cleveland "Big Cat" Williams (June 6, 1933 – September 3, 1999) was an American heavyweight boxer who fought in the 1950s through the 1970s. A Ring Magazine poll once rated him as one of the finest boxers never to win a title. He made an imposing figure, tall with an impressive athletic broad shouldered build.

Williams turned professional in 1951 and fought many of the best heavyweights of his era.

During the late 1950s and early 1960s, the 6 ft 3 in[1] Williams was a top-rated heavyweight. His quest to obtain a title fight, however, was consistently derailed. First he was knocked out by Liston on April 15, 1959, after hurting Liston early and breaking Liston's nose.

Williams recovered from the Liston fight to score more wins, but was again stopped by Liston in 2 rounds in their rematch on March 21, 1960. His quest for the title was later stalled when he was held to a draw by Eddie Machen on July 10, 1962, and when he dropped a split decision on March 13, 1963 to Ernie Terrell, a fighter he had previously knocked out in 7 rounds in 1962. During this time frame, he defeated Billy Daniels.

Williams had been inactive the entire year of 1965 while recovering from a gunshot wound he suffered during a scuffle with police officer Dale E. Witten[2] after a traffic stop. Williams was shot with a .357 Magnum in the abdomen, barely survived, and suffered permanent kidney damage, a loss of over ten feet (3m) of his small intestine, and nerve damage from the bullet, which affected his left leg above the knee and caused it to atrophy as a result. He was fined $50 and briefly jailed after pleading no contest to charges arising from the incident. Witten visited Williams the day before his fight with Muhammad Ali, and the two men bore no malice against each other.[3]

It was in the aforementioned physical condition that Williams fought for the heavyweight championship against a peak Muhammad Ali on November 14, 1966 and was stopped easily in the third round.

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. George Foreman interviewed post retirement recalled Williams as one of the three hardest punchers he had been with, stating they had sparred when George was a rising boxer.[citation needed] In 2003, he was ranked 49th in Ring Magazine's list of 100 greatest punchers of all time. It was all in the big famous left hook for Williams. Ring Magazine in the 1980s reported he drove a forklift truck later for a while as a job.[citation needed]

According to George Chuvalo, Cleveland Williams was one of the hardest punchers he faced in his career. Williams, aged 38, was decisioned by veteran Chuvalo over 10 rounds at the Astrodome in Houston, Texas in November 1971. Chuvalo's sheer strength winning an all action bout.[4]
Also, do yourself a favor and check out his BoxRec link: http://boxrec.com/en/boxer/9382

[Dempsey-Louis]

[Dempsey-Louis]

And the Astrodome itself, nicknamed the “Eighth Wonder of the World” for its cutting-edge hemispherical roof and climate-controlled environment, seemed like a symbolic correlative for the encroaching Ali era

This is off task trivia but the infamous Walter O'Malley (Dodgers' owner) was dealing with the architects for what would become the Astrodome back in '57 - He wanted to built a domed stadium in Brooklyn, but City Manager Robert Moses put the nix on it (Moses was already planning Shea Stadium out in Flushing Meadows as part of his World's Fair complex bid for 1964) so O'Malley took the Dodgers to LA and Brooklyn was never the same.

It took the architects several years to find another city willing to take a risk on the newfangled idea.

The first domed stadium was almost built in New York.

[The Old LefHook]

Operating forklift is known to build a great lefhook.

[OCPancho]

He was born in the wrong decade. One decade earlier or later, he might have been a champion .

[Ben Bolt]

Liston–Williams I, Apr 15, 1959. It was a “make-or-break” occasion for both men, and I believe any of ‘em would have been too strong for champ Patterson in that year. But Ingo got in the way, and this battle kind of lost its significance.

BoxRec: Two tall, hard-hitting heavyweights who had trouble finding opponents met each other in the ring … The fight had been billed for 10 rounds, but odds were 3 to 1 it wouldn't go that far.