Exactly 50 years ago today, on October 1, 1975, a fierce battle raged in the “Araneta Coliseum” in Manila, in which Muhammad Ali and Joe Frazier even put their lives on the line. The most important questions about the “Thrilla in Manila”.
The third fight between Muhammad Ali and Joe Frazier made boxing history. No other world heavyweight championship fight was more brutal and merciless than the “Thrilla in Manila”. BOXSPORT looks back at the legendary duel on October 1, 1975 and answers the seven most important questions about it.
1. who won the “Thrilla in Manila”?
The fight was won by Muhammad Ali against Joe Frazier. The “Thrilla” took place on October 1, 1975 in Manila, Philippines. Ali’s WBC and WBA belts were at stake. The duel was stopped after the 14th of 15 scheduled rounds and Ali was declared the winner. At this point, “The Greatest” was ahead on all three scorecards (66:60, 66:62, 76:62). The champion initially used his speed in the ring, sending Frazier to the ropes. But he stood his ground and continued to land increasingly heavy blows. The remaining rounds went to “Smokin’ Joe” and the fight became increasingly brutal. But the momentum shifted in Ali’s favor again. In the 13th round, The Greatest had his rival on the verge of being knocked out, and after the 14th, Frazier’s coach Eddie Futch finally threw in the towel.
2. why was the fight broken off?
The thrilla in Manila took place in front of 25,000 spectators in the “Araneta Coliseum” under extreme conditions. Ali and Frazier boxed in the morning in heat of around 40 degrees and very high humidity so that the fight could be shown on TV in the USA in the evening. This made it one of the toughest fights in the history of boxing. After 14 rounds in which the rivals gave each other a hard time, Smokin’ Joe’s eyes were swollen – he could barely see and was at the end of his tether. Although his protégé wanted to continue fighting, coach Eddie Futch decided to protect Frazier’s health and stop the fight. Ali was also at the end of his tether and collapsed shortly after the stoppage. Both boxers were at times in mortal danger due to their loss of fluids. “It was like death,” Ali commented afterwards.
3. why did Ali and Frazier fight in the Philippines instead of the USA?
Promoter Don King wanted to avoid the stricter regulations in the USA and moved Ali vs. Frazier III to the capital of the Philippines. Philippine President Ferdinand Marcos was keen to stage the fight for reasons of prestige. He used the thrilla in Manila as a media-effective event to present his country internationally. Marcos also sponsored the stock exchanges of the two fighters. He ruled the island state in the Pacific like a dictator, in his second term of office since 1969. At the time of the fight, “martial law” was in force in the Philippines, which Marcos had imposed in 1972.
4 Why was the fight called “Thrilla in Manila”?
This nickname for the duel Ali vs. Frazier III was created by Muhammad Ali. The Greatest not only had a big mouth, he also liked to mock his opponents in rhyme. In the run-up to the fight, he wrote: “It’s gonna be a thrilla, and a chilla, and a killa, when I get the Gorilla in Manila.” He had previously mocked his opponent Joe Frazier as a “gorilla”.
5. how much money did Ali and Frazier earn from this fight?
Muhammad Ali received a guaranteed sum of 4.5 million dollars with a 43 percent share of the gross earnings, while Frazier collected a guaranteed sum of two million dollars with a 22 percent share. The “G.O.A.T.” ultimately earned around nine million and Frazier around five million dollars.
6 How did the first two Ali vs. Frazier duels end – and who was the favorite in Manila?
The first fight between the two rivals took place on March 8, 1971 as “The Fight of the Century” in Madison Square Garden in New York (USA). Joe Frazier was the WBC World Heavyweight Champion and former champion Muhammad Ali was his challenger. The fight itself surpassed even the hype that had been created in the run-up. Smokin’ Joe won the fight between the two previously undefeated boxers unanimously on points. The rematch took place on January 28, 1974, again at the Garden. The duel ran under the slogan “Super Fight II” and was won by Ali unanimously on points. The score was 1:1 between the two. In the third fight in Manila in 1975, the G.O.A.T. went off as the bookies’ 8-5 favorite.
7. what was the relationship between the rivals – before and after the fight?
Initially, Joe Frazier and Muhammad Ali were friends. Because Ali refused to do military service in Vietnam, he lost his boxing license. Frazier lent him money and campaigned for Ali’s ban to be lifted. Before their first fight in 1971, they fell out: Ali mocked Frazier as “Uncle Tom”, a useful idiot of the white establishment. Before the Thrilla in Manila, he insulted him as a “gorilla”. Frazier then raged: “I’ll rip that half-breed’s heart out of his chest.” For a long time, Smokin’ Joe did not forgive his former buddy. “If I could have, I would have thrown him in,” he raged when Ali, who was already suffering from Parkinson’s disease, lit the Olympic flame in Atlanta in 1996. It was only a few years before Frazier succumbed to cancer in 2011 that he is said to have forgiven Ali.
Text by Frank Schwantes