The 40th Anniversary Of The 'Sunshine Showdown' : Foreman Vs. Frazier

kes1111

Rising Star
BGOL Investor


“The Sunshine Showdown,” 1973, has lost some of its luster due to the “Rumble In The Jungle,” 1974, and “Thrilla In Manila,” 1975. The time of the bout appeared to be a weaker moment in world heavyweight history. Only the undefeated champion, Joe Frazier, and a tarnished Muhammad Ali, held names of high recognition and esteem. Within two years, that perception would change so drastically that this period is currently viewed as one of more beloved and respected eras of the heavyweight division.

Don Dunphy proved yet again during his broadcast that he is the best announcer in boxing history, but it was an impassioned (and nearly hysterical) Howard Cosell whose imprint permanently marked this sporting event. American Broadcasting Company, via “Wide World Of Sports,” replayed the television friendly bout in its entirety several times. If the fight retains any permanent personality or identity, it is with the unofficial renaming of the “The Sunshine Showdown” into the “Down Goes Frazier!” bout.
At age 12, George Foreman was destined to be a "bum." That was how he viewed himself when not consumed by grandiose dreams of greatness. Foreman was doing what he liked best -- skipping school, then sneaking back into the family home and flopping his oversized body onto the bed for more sleep. A female family member caught him "playing hooky," but instead of the expected scolding, she said this as she prepared for work: “Go back to sleep. You ain’t never gonna be nothing. Nobody from here ever became anything but dead or drunk.”
But Foreman’s greatest amateur boxing achievement -- heavyweight champion of the '68 Olympics in Mexico City -- made him even more a "bum." He incensed sections of America by waving an American flag after his gold medal match -- patriotism that was mockingly compared to the "black power" fist salute that same year by American track and field stars Tommie Smith and John Carlos from the medal podium. Just 10 days before those Olympics, the Tlatelolco massacre had occurred -- thousands of students were arrested and scores had been killed by Mexican military troops. If Foreman’s flag-waving had been contrasted with Mexico’s violence, it might have been viewed as more heroic. Foreman refused to apologize to the black community, while expressing appreciation for LBJ and Job Corps. (Ironically, Lyndon Baines Johnson would die the same day as “The Sunshine Showdown.”)
One person who had no regrets for waving an American flag, or speaking openly of his love for America, was Don King. The wishful promoter was a former Cleveland numbers banker who had killed two people. The manslaughter-convicted felon latched onto former heavyweight champ Muhammad Ali by lamenting the lack of black boxing promoters. In the process, King had placed himself in position for one of the richest promotions in boxing history: Ali versus Frazier II, with $1.5-million guaranteed for both fighters
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Champion Joe Frazier did not like King, and liked Ali even less, so he ignored a lawsuit forcing the title showdown, and instead chose to face the undefeated Goliath challenger. Ali was openly perturbed: what if Frazier loses? Don King likely held similar thoughts, but refused to show the world anything other than a dazzling smile.
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Don King would learn from “The Sunshine Showdown.” Madison Square Garden, which had hosted the lucrative Frazier/Ali bout, lost its bid to the Government of Jamaica. Alex Valdez had promoted Frazier’s European singing tour, “Joe Frazier and The Knockouts,” and Frazier liked him enough to grant him negotiation for his upcoming title bout. Valdez teamed with a Chinese-descent Jamaican named Lucien Chen, who had worked illegally inside America as a waiter for a Chinese restaurant and saved enough money for a return to Jamaica as a bookmaker and boxing promoter. Valdez and Chen convinced the Government of Jamaica, through local lawyer, Paul FitzRitzson, to bid against Madison Square Garden through the name National Sports Limited.
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Madison Square Garden guaranteed Frazier $800,000 and Foreman $250,000, with the State of New York lowering their taxes to 10%. National Sports Limited, with a Jamaican bank offering collateral, guaranteed Frazier $850,000, Foreman $375,000, with 0% taxes. When Foreman was threatened with a lawsuit from a theatrical agent with whom he had signed a long-term contract -- any injunction not enforceable outside America -- National Sports Limited won the bid and the Government of Jamaica had its heavyweight championship bout. Jamaica would attempt to recoup its investment through closed-circuit television and the box office from its national stadium. (A crowd of 36,000 would be the paid attendance for the 42,000 capacity Kingston venue). Only Playboy publisher, Hugh Hefner could enjoy the fight from the comfort of his home. Paul FitzRitzson: “Mister Hefner is paying us in money and bunnies.”
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Don King is a numbers man, and the idea of a poorer nation sponsoring a heavyweight championship bout would eventually lead to “The Rumble In The Jungle” (Zaire) and the “Thrilla In Manila” (Philippines).
Most viewed Muhammad Ali as the No. 2 heavyweight in the world, but Frazier openly courted the undefeated Olympic champion, Foreman, as the legitimate No. 1 contender. Frazier was perturbed that Ali gave him no credit for his unanimous decision victory in their 1971 fight. Ali continued to insist that he had won their fight (despite being knocked down) and that the judges cheated because he was Muslim and did they not agree with his views on Vietnam.
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Frazier had gained 10 pounds since the Ali bout and did not appear to care. For Ali, millions of dollars were riding \a Frazier victory. Most newspapers viewed Frazier as a likely knockout winner over Foreman, and the gamblers made him a 3 ½-1 favorite. Former heavyweight champion Joe Louis, not an Ali fan, probably made Ali more concerned by predicting the underdog would win. Said Louis: “You don’t have to have experience to beat Frazier. You don’t have to outthink him, the way you do Cassius Clay. (Frazier) is always in front of you and easy to hit. I’ll tell you about that (Frazier-Ali) fight: Clay’s taken something out of Frazier. There’s no doubt about it.”
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Joe Frazier was the psycho robot cowboy killer from Westworld, played by Yul Brynner: Dismember him, throw acid in his face, and he'll come alive again, stepping forward without emotion. Joe Frazier was Michael Myers from Halloween, Jason from Friday the 13th, Freddy Krueger, or Schwarzenegger’s Terminator. Frazier is the crazy man with the hockey mask in Texas Chainsaw Massacre. Frazier’s energy, lack of fear, and tenacity were impossibly intimidating. Oscar Bonovena knocked Frazier down twice in the second round of their encounter, but Frazier smiled and seemed to enjoy the pain. Frazier tenaciously rose from knockdowns with non-stop punches. The worst strategy against Muhammad Ali is to step forward relentlessly, but Ali underestimated the conditioning and drive of the "non-human" champion. George Foreman wanted the heavyweight championship more than anything in the world, but the challenger also knew he might have to kill Joe Frazier to achieve that dream. It was both awesome and frightening.
Joe Frazier had become a blue-collar hero and icon for America. The teenaged Frazier had built his own punching bags in South Carolina out of corn cobs, pine tree sap and cotton. It was Frazier -- not the fictional Rocky Balboa -- whose training included jogging those 72 steps at the Philadelphia Museum of Art. It was Frazier -- not Rocky Balboa -- who pounded raw meat at a Philadelphia slaughterhouse before an eight-hour shift of mopping blood. Frazier had won the heavyweight division of the 1964 Olympics and parlayed that into an undefeated professional career with high-profile victories over Oscar Bonovena, Jerry Quarry and champion Jimmy Ellis. Frazier went to ‘work’ inside the ring, always coming forward, throwing punches with gritty determination. Frazier’s victory over the previously unbeaten Ali had elevated his status as possibly one of the greatest heavyweight champions of all time. One thing was definite, and both Frazier and Foreman knew the truth: When they stepped into the ring on January 22, 1973 in Jamaica, only one of the boxers would be afraid -- and it would not be Frazier.
 

TruDat

Rising Star
BGOL Investor
My uncle has a huge vhs library of all the classic fights.
When I was a kid he would have his friends viewing all of
the classic boxing matches and they use to talk shit of who
was a better fighter by decade. Almost like that
barbershop scene in the Coming To America movie :lol:

I don't know where the term "styles makes fights" originated
from but Foreman demolishing Frazier is proof. With the
Rumble in the Jungle Ali vs Foreman, Ali technical boxing
skills, mentally frustrated Foreman, in which Ali was able to
knocked down Foreman. However, in the two fights of Foreman vs Frazier,
Foreman completed dominated Frazier by each round.

In the 3 wars with Muhammad Ali, Frazier was able to established
his weapons of bobbing, weaving and constant pressure against Ali
and landing the infamous left hooks consistently. Against Foreman,
Frazier had a hard time establishing his pressure. Of course,
according to older boxing heads, some say the refs was too lenient
by not instructing Foreman to stop pushing Frazier, whenever
Frazier attempted to keep the fight inside.

I know a lot of boxing peeps have seen the Foreman-Frazier I (1973)
fight but some didnt know they fought a 2nd time 3 years later (1976).
Also to note, the Foreman-Frazier II fight was 8 months of the
Ali-Frazier III fight Thrilla in Manila.

 
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