Muhammad Ali's Wit and Wisdom

It is difficult to say something about Muhammad Ali that has not already been said. His death is a loss felt by the entire world, yet the memory of his words and deeds will live forever. I am too young to remember Ali's prime but I am old enough to remember when he was still heavyweight champion of the world. One of my earliest Ali memories is reading a chapter about him in a sports book for kids when I was seven or eight years old. What stuck with me is that Ali talked about training for his rematch with Leon Spinks by saying that when his trainers told him to run, he ran, and when they told him to spar, he sparred, because he wanted to do everything possible to make sure that he regained the title; if he lost, it would not be because he failed to put in the work. That message has stayed with me my entire life.

Ali the boxer was remarkable in three distinct phases of his career: (1) The young champion who was so swift and nimble that opposing fighters could literally barely touch him, (2) The slightly past his prime Ali who came back after being banned from boxing for draft evasion (an unjust decision overturned by a Supreme Court verdict) who proved that he could win not just with superior physical tools but also with guile and guts and (3) The clearly past his prime Ali who became the first heavyweight champion to regain the title for the third time.

A fourth phase that we never saw will forever be a source of speculation: What would Ali have accomplished in the late 1960s if he had not been banned from the sport?

As for the fifth and final phase, the less said about the Holmes and Berbick bouts, the better. Those two fights that should have never happened certainly contributed to, if not caused, many of the ailments that plagued Ali for the final decades of his life.

I am not a boxing expert but from what I know of the sport I do believe that Ali was the greatest boxer of all-time or at the very least the greatest heavyweight. His best assets were his mind and his toughness. He analyzed his opponents and himself and he figured out what he had to do to win. Young Ali relied on speed and physical gifts but if those things were all that he had then he never would have beaten Joe Frazier twice or toppled George Foreman when Foreman was considered invincible.

Ali's toughness ultimately proved to be his undoing, because the ability to take punishment may be an asset in the ring but there is a heavy price to be paid later in life. Frazier, who resented Ali's taunts, often cruelly bragged that anyone who wants to know who really won their fights need only look at how rapidly Ali deteriorated physically.

Boxing is a cruel sport but one that rewards cunning, guile and bravery, three qualities that Ali possessed in abundance.

Ali will be remembered as much for his words as his actions. Here are some of my favorite Ali quotes:

1) "I hated every minute of training, but I said, 'Don't quit. Suffer now and live the rest of your life as a champion.'"

2) "Impossible is just a big word thrown around by small men who find it easier to live in the world they've been given than to explore the power they have to change it. Impossible is not a fact. It's an opinion. Impossible is not a declaration. It's a dare. Impossible is potential. Impossible is temporary. Impossible is nothing."

3) "Live everyday as if it were your last because someday you're going to be right."

4) "I wish people would love everybody else the way they love me."

5) "The fight is won or lost far away from the witnesses, behind the lines, in the gym and out there on the road, long before I dance under those lights."

One more for the road: "Float like a butterfly, sting like a bee. Your hands can't hit what your eyes can't see. Rumble young man, rumble."

Rest in Peace, Muhammad Ali. 

Frank Deford's Indelible Portrait of the Beautiful Friendship Between Muhammad Ali and Howard Bingham

"Only love matters to friends. If you have a friend you truly love, whether you're Howard or Muhammad, well, then you can be a friend to the world."--Frank Deford, writing about Muhammad Ali and Howard Bingham

Frank Deford and Gary Smith are two of the greatest craftsmen in sportswriting history. They are more than "just" sportswriters; they are artists who specialize in painting the big canvas, telling in-depth stories that transcend who won and who lost a game or a match. I cannot recall reading a poorly written story by either of them but some stories stand out--and one of them is The Best Of Friends, Deford's July 13, 1998 Sports Illustrated tribute to the loving friendship shared by Muhammad Ali and Howard Bingham. Aristotle called such a friendship "philia," characterized by mutual altruistic love--not a romantic love but a love shared by kindred spirits, a deep friendship in which each person can tell the other not what he wants to hear but what he needs to hear.

Ali may be the most famous man on Earth. Bingham made a name for himself as a first-rate, award-winning photographer. The two friends affectionately call each other "Bill." Deford explains by quoting Bernie Yuman, a mutual friend of Ali's and Bingham's: "You see, that's the sign of the most unqualified faith and love and trust. Bill. Simply calling each other Bill. It means, maybe you're a big-deal Muhammad Ali to the world, but that doesn't mean anything to me. To me, you're just Bill. And Howard became Bill too, because that was Muhammad saying, O.K., we're on even ground, so you're Bill too. And names don't mean anything, do they?"

Scroll back up, click on the link and read Deford's story. You won't regret it--and if you have a friend like that in your life, be very grateful.

Jets Prove Once Again That Talk is Cheap

Rex Ryan's New York Jets talk big but they still have no rings to show for it after the Pittsburgh Steelers raced to a 24-0 lead and then held on to beat the Jets 24-19 in the AFC Championship Game. This is the second year in a row that the Jets lost in the AFC Championship Game. The Jets' slow start versus Pittsburgh markedly contrasts with how the Jets kept the New England Patriots off balance for most of their Divisional playoff game last week and--considering all of the woofing that Ryan and the Jets did about Bill Belichick, Tom Brady and the Patriots--makes one wonder if at some level beating New England really was New York's biggest goal.

New York linebacker Bart Scott--who has made one Pro Bowl and has never won a Super Bowl in his nine season NFL career--barked last week about New England's defense not being able to "stop a nosebleed" but he was largely invisible as Rashard Mendenhall bulldozed over the Jets' defense in the AFC Championship. Scott exclaimed "Can't wait!" when asked about playing the Steelers and his emphatic, colorful comments during that interview with Sal Paolantonio rank up there with Lee Flowers' "paper champions" line regarding the Tampa Bay Buccaneers; Flowers ran his mouth and then watched the Buccaneers later win a Super Bowl while he never won a ring (or even made a Pro Bowl) and Scott's premature boasting and posturing looks just as foolish.

On the fifth anniversary of Kobe Bryant's 81 point game, ESPN commentator Jalen Rose--who guarded Bryant part of the time during that epic performance--said that his Toronto Raptors did not commit a flagrant foul against Bryant because Bryant's demeanor never changed during the game: Bryant was focused on winning the game, not showing up the Raptors; it is worth remembering that earlier in that season Bryant outscored the Dallas Mavericks--a championship-contending team--62-61 in the first three quarters but he sat out the entire fourth quarter because the Lakers had total control over the game: Bryant clearly could have scored at least 70 points (and probably more than that) but the larger goal--the only goal--is winning, not padding one's stats or puffing out one's chest (that is also why Bryant plays hurt even though this damages his stats: he knows that even when he is not 100% healthy he can still draw double teams and maybe even hit a game-winning shot).

I have no problem with guys who talk as long as they deliver the goods--champions like Muhammad Ali, Reggie Jackson and Deion Sanders backed up their words by delivering multiple championships--but here is a bit of wisdom from Julius Erving: "I wanted to win without boasting and lose without crying. If you chew on that one, it's going to keep you in a good place that helps you maintain your sanity while all the madness is going on around you."

"Smokin' Joe" Frazier Fires Off One Liners in Guest Appearance on Friday Night Fights

Joe Frazier, the World Heavyweight Boxing Champion from 1968-73, compiled a 32-4-1 career record, with 27 knockouts; his only losses were to Muhammad Ali and George Foreman (twice each), while his lone draw came in his last bout at the age of 37. Frazier will always be remembered for his trilogy of fights with Ali, winning the first battle--dubbed "The Fight of the Century"--on March 8, 1971 to retain his Heavyweight crown and then losing epic rematches in 1974 and in 1975, the famous "Thrilla in Manila."

Ali taunted Frazier relentlessly, calling him a "gorilla" and saying that he was too ugly to be the champion. While fans may have found the banter entertaining, Frazier took Ali's words to heart and the wounds are still fresh even decades later. After Ali lit the torch at the 1996 Olympics, Frazier--the 1964 Olympic gold medalist--said, "I should have been picked. I wish Ali had fallen into (the flame). If I had the chance, I'd have pushed him in." Frazier told Ali biographer Thomas Hauser, "I don't like him but I got to say, in the ring he was a man...He shook me in Manila; he won. But I sent him home worse than he came. Look at him now. He's damaged goods. I know it; you know it. Everyone knows it...He was always making fun of me. I'm the dummy; I'm the one getting hit in the head. Tell me now, him or me; which one talks worse now?"

Another source of bitterness for Frazier is that Philadelphia, the city where he lives and where he trained many fighters, erected a statue to honor the fictional Rocky Balboa but has yet to put one up in his honor.

A car accident in 2002 injured Frazier's spine and made him wheelchair bound for a time but now he walks with a cane. His fighting style consisted of going forward relentlessly, always attacking, and it is that indomitable spirit that keeps him going despite his injuries and the deaths of two of his brothers earlier this month.

Frazier was this week's guest analyst on ESPN2's "Friday Night Fights" as part of "Hall of Fame Month" and he fired off some pithy, entertaining commentary. The show kicked off with host Brian Kenny introducing Frazier as the owner of the greatest left hook in the sport's history and Frazier responding with a bit of Ali-like rhyming, telling host Brian Kenny, "Hey B, sharp as a razor...I'm 'Smokin' Joe' Frazier!"

After Chris Avalos knocked out Christian Cruz in the first round, Frazier explained why Cruz lost so quickly: "You're not going to (be able to) hit coming from the back (foot) to the front. Instead, you should be there, be ready to BAM, BAM, BAM!" Frazier punched into the air for emphasis. Throughout the telecast he made the point that a lot of today's fighters are not being taught and trained as well as fighters used to be.

The early conclusion of that fight left plenty of time to show some highlights from some of Frazier's bouts, including his March 3, 1968 knockout of Buster Mathis. Frazier recalled telling Mathis, "You got your lunch? You're going to need it." Frazier replaced an injured Mathis on the 1964 Olympic team, so this was a grudge match of sorts. That victory enabled Frazier to claim the World Heavyweight Boxing Championship awarded by the New York State Athletic Commission. Muhammad Ali had been stripped of his crown because he refused to be inducted into the army; in 1970, Frazier beat Jimmy Ellis to capture the WBA and WBC championships, belts that he retained by beating Ali in 1971. Kenny and Frazier also talked about some of Frazier's 1968 title defenses, including a unanimous decision against Oscar Bonavena, who Frazier called a "tough guy...the more I hit him, the tougher he got."

In the next FNF bout, Antwone Smith knocked out Juan Novoa in the fourth round. Frazier commented, "Both guys were wild, throwing shots from left field, right field, with no protection at all...Their legs were too wide to get off combination shots. There are a lot of little things that need to be straightened out with guys in boxing."

On the other hand, Frazier liked what he saw in some classic FNF footage of the "Nigerian Nightmare," Sam Page, who went 5-0 with 5 knockouts in his FNF appearances. "He came out throwing the punches the right way," Frazier said. "Once you get a guy in trouble, get him hurt, continue throwing punches at him. Don't stop and let the referee stop it."

If you blinked, you missed the next FNF contest, a middleweight match between Julio "Baby Face" Garcia and Jose Medina. Garcia ducked a Medina punch and knocked Medina out with a left hook after just 13 seconds. It was not Tone Loc's "Funky Cold Medina" but rather "knocked out cold Medina." Kenny asked Frazier, "What did you think of that fight?" Frazier chuckled and replied, "What fight? That guy got paid to come in and take a bow. That wasn't a fight. He came up to get paid. That means one guy worked harder than the other guy because he knows he has to fight." Frazier quipped that Medina spent more time on his tattoos (of which there were several) than his training.

Speaking of training, Kenny and Frazier then reminisced about the glory days of Frazier's gym in Philadelphia. Kenny noted that Dwight Muhammad Qawi, a previous FNF guest analyst who won world titles in the Light Heavyweight and Cruiserweight divisions, had said that training in Frazier's gym was like "going to school" because there were so many people there from whom one could really learn the ins and outs of the fight game.

Frazier said, "Philadelphia guys take more pride in their job. They come to the gym daily and make sure that they get the right, proper timing inside the gym. The majority of the guys who work in the gym in Philadelphia have been in that ring before and they know that what they are telling their guy is right. All they (the fighters) have to do is follow the instructions."

FNF concluded with a 10 round split decision victory for Breidis Prescott over Richard Abril in a battle between two previously unbeaten lightweights. The fight was pretty even and not particularly exciting, the only real drama being that one judge scored it 95-94 for Prescott, one judge had it 95-94 for Abril but the third judge inexplicably came up with a 97-92 verdict in favor of Prescott. Since Prescott was penalized one point for a low blow, that meant that the third judge thought Prescott had won the fight eight rounds to two, which ESPN2 commentator Teddy Atlas said was "ridiculous." Atlas had Abril as a one point winner; Atlas added that a close decision in favor of Prescott was reasonable but a five point margin made him wonder what the judge was watching and what kind of training he had received.

That fight certainly did not impress Frazier, who told Kenny, "Call it a draw and come back when you are ready to fight. From what I saw, I'd call it a no-contest. Neither one of those guys threw a punch to hurt the other guy. The referee (kept) breaking(ing) it up all night long, so how could it be a good fight?" Kenny replied, "I have no argument with you, sir."

While Prescott-Abril was a dud, Frazier at his best certainly was not, as this video shows: