Philadelphia Boxing Legend Joe Frazier Fighting Advanced Liver Cancer
According to an article by FOXSports.com, Philadelphia boxing legend Joe Frazier is fighting for his life with advanced liver cancer.
The 67-year old former heavyweight champion has been in and out of the hospital since he was first diagnosed with the disease four or five weeks ago, says his personal and business manager Leslie Wolff.
He has not been given a timetable for how much expected time he has to live.
In his boxing career, “Smokin” Joe Frazier was most well-known for his legendary fights with Muhammad Ali. In 1971, he became the first man to defeat Ali, taking him down in the Fight of the Century, a 15-round bout at Madison Square Garden. Frazier and Ali, who were both undefeated before the fight, each earned an unheard of $2.5 million from the fight.
He had another legendary fight with Ali in 1975, which was known as the Thrilla in Manilla. Frazier dominated the middle rounds but fought the last several rounds nearly blind, both eyes virtually swollen shut. After the 14th round, his trainer stopped the fight, even though Frazier wanted to continue. Ali was in just as much pain as Frazier and was planning to quit the fight as well, but he was given the victory because Frazier’s trainer stopped the fight. Ali later added that the fight was the closest thing to death that he has experienced. The fight was named the fifth greatest sporting event of the 20th century by ESPN’s SportsCentury in 1999.
Frazier retired with a 32-4-1 career record in boxing. He lost four times: twice to Ali, and twice to George Foreman. His lone tie came when he attempted a comeback in 1981 at the age of 37.
He is widely considered to be one of the top ten heavyweight fighters in boxing history. ESPN describes him as “one of three greatest heavyweights in perhaps greatest heavyweight generation ever.”
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