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Boxing loses another legend andformer
heavyweight champion Ken Norton dies at 70. |
Norton beat an in-prime Ali in 1973, breaking his jaw in a split decision victory. They fought two more times, both narrow wins for Ali, including a controversial decision in their third and final bout at Yankee Stadium in 1976.
Ken Norton Sr., the former hard-bodied heavyweight with the distinctive cross-armed defense who once defeated a prime
Muhammad Ali while breaking his jaw, died Wednesday at a hospital in Arizona. According to the Los Angeles Times, Norton was receiving treatment for a stroke he suffered last year.
Norton, a former WBC heavyweight champion who fought Ali three times, was 70 and suffering from congestive heart failure, the Times said referencing his former friend and manager,
Patrick Tenore.
Because of his formidable, muscleman build, Norton earned the nickname “Black Hercules.” After he cracked Ali’s jaw in their 1973 bout, becoming just the second man to defeat Ali after Joe Frazier, he got the nickname “Jawbreaker.” Perhaps no fighter gave Ali more fits in the ring than Norton due to his size and technical abilities, according to boxing historian and Showtime announcer Steve Farhood.
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| Ken Norton (r.) and Muhammad Ali have three epic battles but remain friends outside the ring. |
Norton, a former Marine from Illinois, was trained by the great Eddie Futch, who taught Norton to jab with Ali’s jab, thereby neutralizing Ali’s greatest asset, Farhood said. Norton is also credited with fighting one of the greatest rounds in heavyweight history with Larry Holmes in their brilliant 15th round in which both fighters nearly knocked the other out as Holmes earned a split-decision victory in 1978. Norton was inducted into the International Boxing Hall of Fame in 1992 and ranked 22nd among the 50 greatest heavyweights of all time, according to Ring Magazine. His son, Ken Norton Jr., won three Super Bowls and is the current linebackers coach with the NFL’s Seattle Seahawks.
“When I think of Norton I can’t help but think of the greatest era in heavyweight history with Ali and George Foreman and Frazier and Earnie Shavers, and Norton was central to that,” Farhood said. “Norton definitely belongs in that group. He may not have been in the pantheon of the all-time great heavyweights but he certainly tested the greatest heavyweights and look, he beat the greatest heavyweight in history (in Ali), fought one of the greatest rounds in heavyweight history against Larry Holmes. So you have to put him
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Ken Norton (r.) and Muhammad Ali promote their
third and final fight, which takes place at Yankee
Stadium in 1976. |
Norton is believed to have broken Ali’s jaw early in their first fight at the San Diego Sports Arena to win a split decision on March 31, 1973 to claim the NABF heavyweight crown. Norton was a virtual unknown at the time and was credited with pulling off a huge upset, Farhood said.
Nearly six months later Norton and Ali tangled again at the Forum in Inglewood, Calif. This time, Ali returned the favor, defeating Norton via another split-decision victory. The always svelte Norton was even leaner in their second fight, leading some to observe that perhaps Norton had over-trained.
The two met again in the coda to their trilogy at Yankee Stadium on Sept. 28, 1976 with the NYPD on strike, reportedly affecting ticket sales for the fight. Norton pounded a lackluster Ali, who failed to move and use his trademark foot speed. Nonetheless, Ali was awarded a unanimous-decision victory for the WBA and WBC titles in one of the mostly controversial outcomes in boxing history.
Norton bounced back in 1977, however, knocking out undefeated prospect Duane Bobick in one round in May of that year and then winning a split decision against Jimmy Young in a WBC eliminator in November. As a result, Norton was awarded the WBC heavyweight championship in 1978 after Leon Spinks opted not to fight him, choosing to defend his title against Ali instead. In June of 1978, Norton lost a split decision to an undefeated Holmes, costing him the belt.
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| Ken Norton thinks he's beaten Muhammad Ali during their 1976 fight at Yankee Stadium, but the judges think otherwise. |
Despite his impressive build, Norton was known for having a less-than granite chin, and he was stopped by Foreman in just two rounds and by Shavers in just one round. Gerry Cooney also stopped Norton in one round in Norton’s final fight on May 11, 1981.
“I just remember watching Norton-Foreman on close-circuit TV,” Farhood recalls. “Norton came out and took off his robe and everyone in the theater roared because of his build. Then George took off his robe and he dwarfed Norton, just to give you an idea of how big George was compared to everyone else.”
