He won the Thrilla against Joe Frazier in Manila
He won the Thrilla against Joe Frazier in Manila in 1975. The battle is widely regarded as one of the best and most vicious in boxing history, and it was the finale of a three-fight rivalry between the two boxers, which Ali won 2-1. The battle drew a record global television audience of an estimated 1 billion viewers, including 100 million people on closed-circuit theatre television and 500,000 pay-per-view purchases on HBO home cable television.
Ali was sharp from the outset, as Frazier couldn't bob and weave his way inside Ali's jab. The first two rounds were won by Ali. He maintained Frazier in the center of the ring and followed his left jab with several straight-right punches. Two strong punches in the early rounds wobbled or pushed Frazier off balance.
Ali also continued to attack his opponent verbally, most notably in the third round, when he was doing well and had lots of energy. During round 3, Ali began to employ the "rope-a-dope" tactic, in which he used the ropes for support and rest while his opponent expended energy throwing blows. When it worked, Ali would turn off the ropes and unleash a barrage of blows in fast succession on an arm-weary opponent. Ali launched a series of strong punches, many of which missed, about two minutes into the round.
Frazier's timing and rhythm of bobbing and weaving improved during the fifth round. Ali spent the majority of the round on the ropes. Indeed, Frazier landed a massive left hook that thudded on the right side of Ali's face immediately after the bell rung to begin the sixth round. Frazier then landed a huge, whipping left hook to Ali's head seconds later. Ali landed on the ropes behind him again, but this time he appeared slightly bewildered and stiff-legged. Despite this, Ali remained standing and finished the round without being knocked down.
Beginning in round 7, Ali was able to do so effectively for approximately a round and a half, and he was able to best Frazier in exhausting toe-to-toe exchanges during the first minute of round 8. Frazier began to weary in the 12th round, and Ali closed Frazier's left eye with powerful blows and caused a cut over his right eye. This impaired Frazier's vision, allowing Ali to dominate the 13th and 14th rounds. Eddie Futch, Frazier's trainer, conceded the fight before the 15th round. Ali was thus able to defend his title and win the final of his three fights against Frazier, winning 2-1.
