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[70] There have been a number of unproven theories as to the background to the purported dive including that Liston was threatened by the Muslims, or agreed to lose in return for a share in the more marketable Ali's future purses. What are you doing? "The public is not with me. The photo captures the champions exhortations, with all the fire and passion and dynamic physicality that made him such a phenomenon. It was probably Liston's best moment in the entire fight. Biographer Wilfrid Sheed wrote in his book, Muhammad Ali: A Portrait in Words and Photographs, that Clay's protests were heard by ringside members of the Nation of Islam who initially suspected Dundee had blinded his fighter, and that the trainer deliberately wiped his own eyes with the corner sponge to demonstrate to Clay's approaching bodyguards that he had not intentionally blinded him. "[69] The fact that Liston did not complain about the clear breach of boxing rules (being declared knocked out without a count) and Ali's obvious state of bewilderment, shouting at Liston "Nobody will believe this" and asking his handlers "Did I hit him? [52][53] It was the first time since 1919when Jack Dempsey defeated Jess Willardthat a world heavyweight champion had quit on his stool. He was also seeking to prove himself after his two embarrassing and suspicious losses to Ali. Roy Harris, who had gone 13 rounds with Floyd Patterson in a title match, was crushed in one round by Liston. He died circa December 30,. Naturally, they decided that Ali would take on Liston. The governor of nearby Maine, John Reed, stepped up and volunteered to host it in the small town of Lewiston, where a resort and ice rink could provide some infrastructure. [14], Tobe Liston inflicted whippings so severe on Sonny that the scars were still visible decades later. He could probably drive his thumb through your skull like Michael Myers, It's crazy to think about the fact that Sonny Liston was an actual gangster running with gangs.. and then he looks so soft spoken in the interview. There are no official records of his birth Sonny Liston - BoxRec Liston went down at 1:44, got up at 1:56, and Walcott stopped the fight at 2:12. [19], On June 23, 1953, a team consisting of ten recent St. Louis Golden Gloves champions of all weight classes, with Liston on top as the heavyweight, was gathered to represent the United States in an International Golden Gloves (USA vs. West Europe) competition at Kiel Auditorium in St. Louis. [16] Listonaged around 13, according to his later reckoningsremained in Arkansas with his father. He cited Liston's inability to lift his arm: "There is no doubt that Liston's arm was damaged. Rode with the muggers in the dark and dread and all them sluggers went down like lead. [35] Liston's victory was loudly booed. The victim sought out the executioner." Liston was depicted as a bad guy by the media, a handbreaker for the mafia. "[35], U.S. President John F. Kennedy also did not want Patterson to fight Liston. Genuinely kind mobster who had been convicted of armed robbery and assault. [83] Herb Goldman stated that Liston, when in his prime between 1958 and 1963, was the most feared fighter in boxing history. Liston didn't seem to mind though. The official time of the stoppage was announced as 1:00 into the first round, which was wrong. For Sonny Liston, a Ballad to a Heavyweight - The New York Times "[82] Johnny Tocco, a trainer who worked with George Foreman and Mike Tyson as well as Liston, said Liston was the hardest hitter of the three. Asked by a young white reporter why he was not fighting for freedom in the South, Liston deadpanned, "I ain't got no dog-proof ass. Sonny Liston had a very sad upbringing & had to learn to survive at a young age. Washington University Libraries, Film and Media Archive, Henry Hampton Collection. At about 30 seconds into the round he hit Liston with several combinations, causing a bruise under Liston's right eye and a cut under his left, which eventually required eight stitches to close. He used the platform to expound on the political theory that was so reviled in white America, defending Malcolm X and condemning racial oppression this was still months before President Lyndon B. Johnson signed the Civil Rights Act of 1964. It was more likely that Liston was out of shape according to a story in Esquire at the time, Liston trained as normal, running around five miles a day, eating hot dogs and drinking beer. He was also possibly much older than his listed 32 years than anything else Liston was the second-youngest of 25 children to parents who didnt exactly keep records of birthdates. Ira Gay Sealy/The Denver Post via Getty Images According to the post, he returned back home later that morning and called his sparring partner Gary Bates to tell him he was leaving for Los Angeles but that they should get together when he returned in a couple of days. He particularly resented a 1961 arrest by a black patrolman for loitering, claiming to have merely been signing autographs and chatting with fans outside a drugstore. He also had a reputation for bullying people such as porters and waitresses. Paul R Gallender, 2012. [12], Liston never complained about prison, saying he was guaranteed three meals every day. . [citation needed], Liston competed in the 1953 United States National Championships at Boston Garden and passed the preliminaries, stopping Lou Graff in the second round on April 13, but lost in the quarterfinals to 17-year-old Jimmy McCarter on April 15. Machen's mobility enabled him to go the distance but he was clearly outpointed despite Liston being penalised for a low blow in the 11th round. One Journalist's Attempt To Solve 'The Murder Of Sonny Liston' - WBUR There were some, however, who believed the fight was legitimate. We had a return bout clause with Clay, but if you say your guy just quit, who is gonna get a return bout? Writer Jack McKinney said, "I watched Sonny. [49], Clay later said that in round five he could only see a faint shadow of Liston during most of the round, but by circling and moving frantically he managed to avoid Liston and somehow survive. He was a gentle man. Liston also appears in the sequel, Blood's a Rover. Boston: Little, Brown. Sonny Liston in his prime . But audiences attending Knopfler's concerts around North America this summer are hearing and responding favorably to a song of a different genre, a bluesy narrative ballad called "Song for Sonny Liston," about the troubled fighter who preceded Muhammad Ali as heavyweight champion in the early 1960's. I didn't want anything to do with him. To the rest of the world, it would be known as "The Phantom Punch." That shot, which Ali dropped Sonny Liston with on May 25, 1965, was far from a phantom. He was poking the bear a bit there . Jim Murray of the Los Angeles Times wrote that it was "no phantom punch." Unfortunately for Martin, however, his career ended after that fight due to a detached retina he suffered during the bout. So I went down. However, there were again rumors of alcohol abuse in training. I know!" Two more arrestsfor disorderly conduct and resisting arrest and another for impersonating a copled to Liston being suspended by the Pennsylvania Athletic Commission on July 14, 1961. He also took his gun. and "Nobody will believe this!"[63]. that startles everyone in a 100 foot radius. "I remember him telling me one day that he found himself watching boxing but he didn't like the way it made him feel," Knopfler said. The suspension was honored in all states. Arthur Daley of the New York Times wrote that Liston's handlers knew he "didn't have it anymore,"[65] and allegedly they had secretly paid sparring partner Amos Lincoln an extra $100 to take it easy on him -[citation needed] - the same man, incidentally, that Liston dismissed in less than two rounds a full three years later. [85] Geraldine had a daughter from a previous marriage, and the Listons subsequently adopted a boy from Sweden. Banker said, "Sheriff [Ralph] Lamb told me, 'Tell your pal Sonny to stay away from the West Side because we're going to bust the drug dealers.'" [34] Many African-Americans disdained Liston. In his own words in Thomas Hauser's 1991 biography: "The punch jarred him. "He was scared, he was scared of so many things," Knopfler said. At one point, Liston had Clay against the ropes and landed a hard left hook. "He said, 'Cut the gloves off. The second fight? For me, the most fascinating thing about Liston was the fact that his birth date is unknown. He was 6ft 1in (1.85m), and had an exceptionally powerful physique, with a disproportionately long reach at 84 inches (2.13m). Many in attendance did not see Ali deliver the punch. Liston believed his date of birth to be May 8, 1932, and used this for official purposes[11] but by the time he won the world title an aged appearance added credence to rumors that he was actually several years older. Remembering One Of Boxing's Storied Bouts : NPR He said that Liston was not quick with his hand or footwork, that he relied too much on his ability to take a punch, and that he could be vulnerable to an opponent with more hand speed. Only Massachusetts was willing to host the fight, though it was delayed from November 1964 to May 1965 so that Ali could recover from hernia surgery. This interview is missing a "BOOOOOOOMZQUAD!!" He also went with a new manager in 1958: Joseph "Pep" Barone, who was a front man for mobsters Frankie Carbo and Frank "Blinky" Palermo. [5][6] Alfie Potts Harmer in The Sportster also ranked him the third greatest heavyweight and the sixth greatest boxer at any weight. Two of the three official scorers, or judges, awarded the round to Liston, and the other scored the round even. In the 2015 British crime film Legend, Liston is played by Mark Theodore in a scene where gangster Reggie Kray poses for a picture with the boxer. "[75], Future world heavyweight champion George Foreman, who sparred with Liston after Foreman's amateur career, assessed Liston's jab as the most formidable he faced and Liston as the strongest man he encountered in the ring, describing Liston as having the most natural talent and skill. Philadelphia wanted nothing to do with him. Technically, contracts for boxing matches werent supposed to have rematch clauses, though pretty much all of them had some sort of loophole and agreement when each side wanted to guarantee a return bout again, the laws by which boxing governed itself were really more suggestions at the time. Dude was only 6'2 and his hands dwarfed Lesnar's. [30], Liston became the No. Muhammad Ali biographer Jonathan Eig shared a new theory as to why Sonny Liston may have taken a dive in the boxers' second bout. Ali biographer Wilfrid Sheed wrote, in his Muhammad Ali: A Portrait in Words and Photographs, that Liston planned to throw the fight for reasons unknown and used the legitimate first-round knockdown for that end. [29] Machen's taunting and his spoiling tactics of dodging and grapplingat one point almost heaving Liston over the ropesso alienated the audience that Liston received unaccustomed support from the crowd. There are echoes of slavery in his upbringing." A dominant contender of his era, he became the world heavyweight champion in 1962 after knocking out Floyd Patterson in the first round, repeating the knockout the following year in defense of the title; in the latter fight he also became the inaugural WBC heavyweight . Helen had one child before she married Tobe, and Tobe had 13 children with his first wife. Was Pariah boxing legend Sonny Listons OD really a mob murder? After Ali's win against Sonny Liston, he wouldn't . Both fights were in Summerlin's hometown of Detroit.[23]. "[98], Some claim Liston was murdered. [59], Liston trained hard for the rematch, which was scheduled to take place November 13, 1964, in Boston. The Murder of Sonny Liston: A Story of Fame, Heroin, Boxing & Las Vegas Pan publisher; 2017. That would prove to be an understatement. [50] You've seen him before but probably didn't realize it because the most famous photo ever taken of Sonny was not at his best angle. [33], Civic leaders were also reluctant, worrying that Liston's unsavory character would set a bad example for youth. During the fourth round Liston appeared dominant as Clay coasted, keeping his distance. The previous month, Schreibauer had won a bronze medal in the European Championships. "But can he hit!" . Tobe and Helen had 12 children together; Sonny was the second youngest child. I want to prove to the world there's dirty work afoot.' interview with Alex Haley in Muhammad Ali by Thomas Hauser. [62] The promoters needed a new location quickly, whatever the size, to rescue their closed-circuit television commitment around the country. "[68], While Liston publicly denied taking a dive, Sports Illustrated writer Mark Kram said that years later Liston told him, "That guy [Ali] was crazy. 10 Wild Stories From The Life Of Sonny Liston - Listverse Wepner needed 72 stitches and suffered a broken cheekbone and nose. The torn tendon had bled down into the mass of the biceps, swelling and numbing the arm. This is a clip out of the \"The Other Side\" Documentary. 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