The only fighter to ever stop Muhammad Ali believes he is the greatest heavyweight of all time.
More commonly referred to as ‘The Greatest’, Ali is often regarded as being the greatest fighter to have ever laced up the gloves.
His career began back in 1960, just a few months after he captured an Olympic gold medal at the Summer games in Rome. Ali needed just four years to capture the world heavyweight championship for the first time, when he knocked out Sonny Liston in the sixth round of their bout in 1964,
‘The Greatest’ went on to enjoy a number of victories against an abundance of legendary heavyweights, including Joe Frazier, Ken Norton and ‘Big’ George Foreman, who he defeated in ‘The Rumble In The Jungle’ in 1974.
Larry Holmes, who became the first man to beat Ali via stoppage when they fought back in 1980, revealed to Sky Sports Boxing that he should be regarded as the greatest heavyweight of all time instead of the man they call ‘The Greatest’.
“Ali don’t have the fight record that I have with defending the title, he didn’t hold his title for seven and a half years. Why can’t I fit in that box, why does Muhammad Ali have to be the greatest, he can say he’s the greatest, you can say he’s the greatest, but I know different, I’m the greatest.”
Holmes, who was perhaps best known as ‘The Easton Assassin’, reigned as the world heavyweight champion between 1978 and 1985, defeating the likes of Ali himself, Earnie Shavers and Leon Spinks during his reign.
