A triology of fights that were a licence to thrill

DERBY DAYS BOXING Muhammad Ali v Joe Frazier:The fierce rivalry between Mohammad 'The Greatest' Ali and Joe 'Smokin Joe' Frazier kept the boxing world enthralled during the 70s

THIS WEEK marks the 33rd anniversary of the final showdown in what was surely the greatest ever rivalry in sport. Boxing matches have always been relentlessly hyped, with the bout usually not coming even close to living up to the pre-fight banter.

Even the Vitali Klitschko (who hasn't fought in four years) versus Samuel Peter (The Nigerian Nightmare) heavyweight bout in Berlin on Saturday week is getting the "unmissable" treatment from the promoters.

There has never been any doubt, however, that the Ali-Frazier trilogy reached and surpassed the pre-match billing - which is remarkable considering the hype that accompanied the fights. Even the first, in 1971, was confidently trumpeted as The fight of the Century.

How much has changed, and how much has remained the same in four decades. It wasn't simply two undefeated heavyweights that stepped into the ring on March 8th, 1971 at Madison Square Garden in New York. Ali was a flamboyant, anti-war Muslim who, prior to two warm-up fights in late 1970, hadn't fought since 1967 because the New York State Athletic Commission and other boxing commissions suspended his boxing licence after he tried to dodge the draft.

Frazier, on the other hand, grew up in a large, rural, strongly Baptist, southern family (he listed reading the bible as one of his hobbies) and was viewed as the working class opposite to the flashy Ali.

In fact, Ali, who was by now promoting himself as the "People's Champion" had called Frazier an "Uncle Tom" and favourite of white Americans (at the time it would be hard to imagine a bigger insult). "A white lawyer kept him out of jail. And he's going to Uncle Tom me," Frazier later wrote in his autobiography.

Seven hundred reporters joined the 20,000 others who crammed into the New York stadium for the bout - including one Frank Sinatra, who worked for the night taking pictures for Lifemagazine because he failed to secure a ticket. Hundreds of millions more watched from their living rooms.

The 29-year-old Ali was introduced as the undefeated former champion of the world, his record standing at 31-0 (with 25 knockouts). Then came the 27-year-old undefeated champion of the world, Frazier's record standing at 26-0 (23 by way of knockout).

The puncher beat the boxer on points, with both men being taken to hospital immediately after the contest. Frazier won, but the skill, drama and pure determination from both fighters ensured the world would demand a second chapter. And they got it, though it was another three years before it was written.

Early in 1973, Frazier would suffer his first professional defeat at the powerful hands of Olympic champion George Foreman. Later that year, in the Rumble in the Jungle, Ali would beat Foreman.

However, in between would come another bruising encounter between the sport's greatest rivals. The huge hype again followed Ali and Frazier into the New York ring on January 28th, 1974 (in fact, the two had brawled in a studio during the build-up). This time the result was as decisive, and bruising, as the first meeting. Ali had also won the right to challenge Foreman.

By the end of the year, he was the undisputed king once again, and wins followed against the likes of Ron Lyle and Joe Bugner. In fact, Frazier was ringside for the Bugner fight, and Ali managed to find the time to taunt him between rounds.

Which brings us to this week 33 years ago. Ali promised it would be "a killa and a thrilla and a chilla when he got the gorilla in Manila".

Ali was almost considered to be merely doing a washed-up Frazier a favour by giving him one last pay day. But, regardless, the bout caught the world's attention once again. More than 28,000 packed the Araneta Coliseum in Manila and an estimated 700 million watched the fight from home (remarkably, the fight started at 10.45am local time to accommodate television viewers in North America).

Ali looked for a quick finish and in the first rounds pummelled his opponent, who, remarkably, continued to come forward.

Frazier never needed provocation or motivation, but Ali's pre-match words - as they did prior to the other two bouts - cut deep. And he never forgot. Even in 1996, when Ali - suffering from Parkinson's disease - lit the Olympic flame in Atlanta, Frazier remarked he would have liked to have "pushed him into it".

What Frazier never understood was that he needed Ali as much as Ali needed him. As the Pulitzer prize-winning writer David Halberstam wrote, "the only way we know of Ali's greatness is because of Frazier's equivalent greatness".

In fact, Ali did apologise for his pre-bout remarks, in 2001 to a reporter for the New York Times, but Frazier complained that, "he didn't apologize to me - he apologized to the paper".

When Ali was asked about Frazier's dismissal of the apology, he said: "If you see Frazier, you tell him he's still a gorilla."

But by the fifth round of the their third fight, it was Ali that was visibly tiring and Frazier began to land some big blows and, at the start of round seven, Ali is believed to have whispered in Frazier's ear, "Joe, they told me you was all washed up", with Frazier replying, "they lied".

Whether it was said or not, the Ali camp were certainly taken aback by the ferociousness of Frazier. Ali, however, rallied and by the 13th and 14th rounds he was again looking to put Frazier on the floor. Frazier refused, but his trainer, Eddie Futch, believing both fighters were now entering a life-threatening zone, Futch put a hand on Frazier's shoulder and stopped him coming out for round 15. Ali realised the fight was over and stood up to celebrate before collapsing with exhaustion.

Later, Ali would say the final episode in the Ali-Frazier trilogy would be the closest thing to death he had experienced.