Ali inoki

Japanese wrestler Antonio Inoki - who died last week aged 79 - took on boxing legend Muhammad Ali ali inoki a bizarre hybrid fight inwhich had 1. In one corner, ali inoki, the undisputed heavyweight boxing champion of the world, the Greatest Of All Time. In fact, the much-hyped fight went down as the most disappointing duel in both boxing and wrestling history.

By Bruce Haring. Antonio Inoki, whose most famous moment on the world stage was an unorthodox exhibition match against boxing champion Muhammad Ali that aimed to settle which sport could beat the other, died Friday in Japan. He was 79 and no cause of death was released. In wrestling-mad Japan, Inoki was considered its most important star, selling out countless arenas and stadiums from the s and on. In addition to the sold-out crowd of more than 14, at the Nippon Budokan in Tokyo, the exhibition fight aired on closed-circuit across the world, including more than 32, people at Shea Stadium in New York. Ali took far more damage in the bout than Inoki did, and sustained serious injuries. The damage limited his mobililty for the rest of his career.

Ali inoki

Muhammad Ali vs. At the time, Ali had come off a knockout victory over Richard Dunn in May and was the undisputed heavyweight boxing champion. Inoki, who had been taught catch wrestling by wrestler Karl Gotch , was staging exhibition fights against champions of various martial arts , in an attempt to show that pro wrestling was the dominant fighting discipline. The fight itself, which was fought under special rules , is seen as a precursor to modern mixed martial arts MMA. The result of the fight, a draw, has long been debated by the press and fans. The fight was refereed by Gene LeBell. Ali characteristically bragged to Hatta: "Isn't there any Oriental fighter who will challenge me? I'll give him one million dollars if he wins". The deal was struck in March , and the fight was scheduled for June 26 at Tokyo's Nippon Budokan. Several press conferences were held to promote the fight. When the two men first met, Ali announced he would nickname Inoki "The Pelican", because of his prominent chin. Inoki replied, via an interpreter: "When your fist connects with my chin, take care that your fist is not damaged". He then presented Ali with a crutch , to use after he had been thrown from the ring. Inoki said afterwards: "I don't know how seriously Muhammad Ali is taking the fight, but if he doesn't take it seriously, he could suffer damage.

As Ali arrived in Tokyo, ali inoki hype grew louder. However, on the next day, Ali's people demanded the contract to be voided, explaining that Ali cannot singlehandedly agree to any match without consulting his manager and promoter. The referee would then come around and count Ali out, ali inoki, giving Inoki the win in front of his fellow countrymen, and allowing Ali to save face.

Warning: this piece is 4, words long. If you don't think you can get away with pretending to work while you read for that long, you might want to print it out and read it on the train home later. Picture Muhammad Ali. Standing snarling over Sonny Liston? Shadow boxing on the bottom of a swimming pool?

Muhammad Ali vs. At the time, Ali had come off a knockout victory over Richard Dunn in May and was the undisputed heavyweight boxing champion. Inoki, who had been taught catch wrestling by wrestler Karl Gotch , was staging exhibition fights against champions of various martial arts , in an attempt to show that pro wrestling was the dominant fighting discipline. The fight itself, which was fought under special rules , is seen as a precursor to modern mixed martial arts MMA. The result of the fight, a draw, has long been debated by the press and fans. The fight was refereed by Gene LeBell. Ali characteristically bragged to Hatta: "Isn't there any Oriental fighter who will challenge me? I'll give him one million dollars if he wins".

Ali inoki

Ali, who died in at the age of 74 , is third inductee of this year's class, joining Paul Heyman and Bull Nakano. Even with all of his accolades in and out of the boxing ring, Ali also made notable impact in the professional wrestling world. In the very first WrestleMania in , Ali served as the special guest referee for the main event tag team match between Hulk Hogan and Mr. Wonderful" Paul Orndorff. By the time of the event, Ali had already retired as an accomplished boxer. As the match was erupting in chaos, Ali delivered an iconic moment when he punched Piper with his signature right hand. Hogan and Mr. T would win the match in the showcase that would become WWE's flagship event.

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It's only 30 years on and the facts are already a mess, recounted by a disparate set of narrators, each as unreliable as the other. There will be no Pearl Harbour! Donn F Draeger was one of them. According to Inoki, Ali and his entourage had signed on expecting the fight to be an exhibition rather than a real contest. Inoki's fans thought he had out-witted the cheating Americans. Anchorage Daily Times. December 21, In one corner, the undisputed heavyweight boxing champion of the world, the Greatest Of All Time. On the day of the fight Ali made a scene upon his arrival at the airport, bellowing "There will be no Pearl Harbor! The story of exactly how Ali came to be in that ring, underneath Antonio Inoki's spandex-clad ass, is tough to untangle. Please improve this article by replacing them with named references quick guide , or an abbreviated title.

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In the ninth, Ali passed to attack. The boxing legend suffered two blood clots and an infection in his left leg which led his doctor to consider amputation, while Inoki broke a bone in his foot from kicking Ali so much. On June 23, , frustrated by repeated rule changes clearly designed to limit what he could do against Ali, Inoki proposed a winner-take-all of personal assets and the entire promotional revenue as proof of how serious he was about the match during the final signing ceremony three days before the battle; Ali accepted and signed the contract. Ali's representative read a message over the PA:. In round twelve, Ali became confident after blocking several, though not all, of Inoki's kicks. Donn F Draeger was one of them. The boxer's blocks were relatively successful, but Inoki had continued to land kicks, and Ali's corner was forced to tend his leg again. In the thirteenth round, it was Ali who became the aggressor, taking the center of the ring and backing Inoki towards a corner. Ali shuffled around looking perplexed. Taking into consideration the points deducted from Inoki, he scored it 71—71 and thereby a draw. Diego M. I struggled to eat, but such a life gave me the spirit to fight.