Angelo Dundee: The Legendary Trainer's 3 Greatest Fights with Muhammad Ali

By (Featured Columnist) on February 2, 2012

5,478 reads

2

Previous
1 of 5
Next
83904590_crop_650x440
Jed Jacobsohn/Getty Images

A true icon of boxing has passed away.

At the age of 90, Angelo Dundee suffered a heart attack after being taken to the hospital with a blood clot.

His son, Jimmy Dundee, said: "Thankfully, the whole family was with him. We have lost a great man. My dad led a wonderful life."

Dundee leaves a legacy of special moments after training champions like Sugar Ray Leonard and George Foreman.

But, of course, the most famous partnership Dundee had was with Muhammad Ali. The two worked together for Ali's whole career, never to split. 

So here, in no particular order, are the great man's three greatest nights in boxing with the man he called "The Louisville Lip."

Muhammad Ali vs. Henry Cooper


Sugar Ray Leonard with memories of Angelo Dundee at Dundee's birthday celebrations

One of Dundee's greatest moments came in 1963 in London.

Ali (known then as Cassius Clay) had been on the receiving end of a huge punch from Henry Cooper, sending him crashing to the canvas for the first time in his career.

Clay looked completely out on his feet, and he stumbled around to be saved by the bell.

Dundee saw that his man needed more time. Thinking on his feet, Dundee seized on a small tear in Clay's glove and used his fingers to open the tear

After pointing it out to the referee, a replacement was found. This time allowed Clay a full extra minute to recover on his stool.

Dundee's quick thinking saved Clay, who went on to knock out Cooper in the fifth round.

The Rumble in the Jungle

Photo: AP
Photo: AP

Dundee also takes some of the credit for one of Muhammad Ali's most memorable victories.

In 1974, Dundee was walking around the ring in Zaire and realized that the ropes had become slack in the humid air.

Dundee took it upon himself to refit the ropes, using a razor blade to make sure that they were springy, allowing Ali to use them for his famous rope-a-dope tactics that tired out Foreman and allowed Ali to take the fight.

The Rumble in the Jungle has become one of boxing's most famous nights, but without Dundee it could have been a very different story.

Muhammad Ali vs. Sonny Liston

Article-0-03701f6d0000044d-521_468x286_display_image

One of the greatest victories for the Ali-Dundee duo came in 1964.

Sonny Liston had become the heavyweight champion after knocking out Floyd Patterson in the first round.

Liston was quickly becoming the most-ducked fighter around, but that didn't deter Dundee and Clay from pursuing a fight.

A heavy underdog, Clay impressed in the first four rounds, easily outmaneuvering his slower opponent.

However, as Clay returned to his stool after the fourth round, it was clear that something was wrong.

Clay was having trouble seeing and looked like he may have to quit on his stool. Dundee was not about to let the opportunity slip away, however, yelling "this is the big one."

After washing down Ali's eyes, he told his fighter to "get out there and run.''

Ali went on to win by TKO after Liston didn't come out for seventh round.

Begin Slideshow
Keep Reading
Flag
Props (0)
This article is

What is the duplicate article?

Why is this article offensive?

Where is this article plagiarized from?

Why is this article poorly edited?

Flag This Article
Crop_45x45
or to post a comment

2 Comments

There are no comments yet. Get the conversation started by leaving the first comment

Loading comments...
just now posted just now
  • Loading...
  • Nobody has liked this comment yet
Cancel

This comment and all replies have been deleted This comment has been deleted Undo delete

Follow B/R on Facebook

Fans of bleacherreport

Follow @BleacherReport on Twitter
Boxing

Subscribe Now

We will never share your email address

Thanks for signing up.

Got something to say?

Biggest Trash Talkers in Boxing History Hint: you can use arrow keys to navigate through this channel.