Ali entered the bout unbeaten at 26-0 with 21 knockouts and was making the seventh defense of the heavyweight championship he had won from Sonny Liston in 1964. At just 24 years old, he had already defeated Liston twice, Floyd Patterson twice, Henry Cooper and European champion Karl Mildenberger. His confidence and unique “stick-and-move” style had made him a 5-to-1 favorite.
Williams, meanwhile, brought a formidable record of 69-5-1 with 55 knockouts. Long considered one of boxing’s most dangerous punchers, the 33-year-old had overcome extraordinary adversity simply to receive his first world title opportunity. Two years earlier, he had been shot during an encounter with a Texas highway patrolman. The bullet caused catastrophic internal injuries, leading to the removal of a kidney and permanent damage to muscles in his hip and leg. Although he remarkably returned to win four straight fights, many questioned whether he could ever again be the devastating heavyweight he had once been.
Ali mixed in quick combinations while forcing Williams to follow him for much of the opening round. The challenger struggled to get within punching range and landed little of consequence as Ali set the tone early.
Williams attempted to change tactics by cutting off the ring and forcing Ali toward the corners. For brief moments he appeared to have some success, but Ali repeatedly escaped with quick footwork before firing sharp counters.
Midway through the round, Ali landed a crushing right hand that dropped Williams for the first time. Williams rose bravely, only to be floored again after another rapid combination. Moments later, Ali unleashed a blistering five-punch combination that sent Williams crashing to the canvas for a third time.
There was no three-knockdown rule in championship fights, and the bell sounded before referee Harry Kessler could complete the count. Williams staggered back to his corner badly hurt, his title hopes hanging by a thread.
Knowing he needed to change the course of the fight, Williams came out throwing desperate punches. Ali calmly avoided nearly everything before exploding with another series of lightning-fast combinations.
A left hook sent Williams down for the fourth time. Although the challenger again beat the count, he was no longer able to defend himself effectively. Ali poured on another barrage until referee Harry Kessler stepped in and stopped the fight at 1:08 of the third round.
The official result was a technical knockout, giving Ali the seventh successful defense of his heavyweight championship.
The fight has since become synonymous with Ali at his athletic peak. His speed, movement, hand speed, and accuracy produced a performance that many historians regard as the finest of his career and one of the greatest ever by a heavyweight champion.
Although Williams displayed tremendous courage by repeatedly rising from the canvas, the effects of the 1964 shooting had clearly robbed him of the explosiveness that once made him one of boxing’s most feared contenders. He retired soon after the defeat before briefly returning several years later.
The victory for Ali further cemented his status as the sport’s premier heavyweight. Less than a year later, however, his boxing career would be interrupted when he was stripped of his titles after refusing induction into the U.S. Army because of his opposition to the Vietnam War.
His exile lasted more than three years, making the victory over Cleveland Williams one of the final glimpses of the first version of Muhammad Ali, a champion whose combination of speed, reflexes and athleticism many historians believe has never been surpassed in the heavyweight division.
