"Styles make fights". Who has Muhammad Ali NOT fought (in any era) who could have beaten him and why?

Answer 1

The first fighter who comes to mind is Jack Johnson, he was a gifted boxer with the physical tools to give anyone trouble. Jack had the mobility to give Ali a rough time and had about a good a chance of beating "the greatest" as anyone.

When you look at the guys who gave Ali trouble in his day, Frazier and Norton do not at first glance seem to hold the stature of the bigger guns of LIston and Forman. Both had power, but they also differed considerably in the area of offensive footwork. They could cut the ring off with the best of them, and had the speed and reflexive quickness to capatilize on brief openings. Fraziers left hook quite possibly was the best example of a left hook boxing ever produced and would have given anyone trouble. Mobility was the added edge Norton, Frazier and to a lesser extent a young Leon Spinks used in combination with pressure to give Ali the most trouble.

A modern fighter who appeared to have such traits with the skill level to give Ali a problem would have been Evander Holyfield. The two would have produced an epic battle if they could have met when both were in top form, and Holyfield had a style that would have given Ali fits.

Few, if any heavyweights in history could have matched Ali's Quickness and speed, but one that supassed even Ali's speed was Roy Jones Jr. I do not consider Roy a true heavyweight, but Jones at his peak was almost impossible to catch. Even Ali would have had his hands full, but it is unlikely Roy could have matched the agressiveness of say a Jimmy Young needed to beat Ali. I watched Jimmy Young win a decision against Ali only to be robbed by questonable scoring, but the combination of agressiveness and mobility was Young's M.O. as well, so Jimmy's performance against Ali serves as a template on how to beat Ali. Jones would have tested Ali as well if both could have fought and also had a shot at beating "the greatest".

I disagree completely with Sam H's assesment of the Klitschko brothers, they are both over rated and wouldn't have fared well against most of the greats Ali beat in his time, let alone given Ali a fight. They fight at the skill level of a Jerry Quarry or Henry Cooper, solid fighters with decent power, but lack the mobility to pose a serious theat to Ali.

Lewis didn't have the chin or the defensive ability to survive against Ali, as both McCall and Rockmon showed. Ali would have exploited this flaw much more effectivly than either Oliver or Haseem did with the same result.

Answer 2

This question is too general to be answered properly. However, if we clarify a few items, we can give it a try. Let us assume that you mean Ali at his prime. Then, the answer depends mainly on the rules and venue, and quality of opponent. If the fight is under Queensberry rules in a boxing (or any other) venue, then the answer is no. Ali would win every single time. Many consider him either the greatest, or one of the greatest, heavyweight boxing champions of all time. If the bout were held under MMA rules, the question would be which MMA rules, which venue, which opponent, and also how much cross training Ali did before the bout. If Ali did absolutely no preparation for such a bout, he might would still have a very good chance of winning, so the the answer would be possibly. Boxers are the best conditioned of an martial artist. They do hundreds of hours of full-contact daily sparring before professional bouts, and most begin their training regime at 3:30 am with 6-12 miles of running, go back to sleep, and then an hour of skipping, calisthenics, the sparring, an hour of coaching, etc. In an MMA match where they are allowed to hit without their boxing gloves, the boxer would have a good chance due to his superior conditioning and striking ability (remember, they are used to 10-12 round matches). If they have to wear their gloves, then they are much less maneuverable, and at a disadvantage. MMA favors wrestling, so cross training in this and some kicking defense would even the odds in a MMA match. The reality is that boxers have little incentive to compete in MMA because the money is not there, so you will not see any professional boxers of high caliber there in the first place. (Shannon Briggs was one exception, and he won against a wrestler by KO). However, Ali was an exception. He actually did compete against several wrestlers, so we have some historical basis for your question. In all his bouts, the usual problems were encountered. Which rules, which venue, gloves, etc. There was no practical solution to these questions. In the famous Inoki match, which was declared a draw, Inoki stayed on his back and kicked the whole match to avoid getting knocked out, and Ali avoided a wrestling competition as well. It was a draw, and illustrated the problem of finding rules that suited mixing martial arts. Then there was the prior bout with Kenny Benkowski, which actually was quite impressive. Ali was right in there wrestling and showing his strength. However, it is impossible to draw any conclusions from these matches. The boxer-wrestler debate has been going on since the Greeks and Romans, and they were smart enough to keep both in seperate rings. A cage or octagon will always favor a wrestler, and a ring with ropes or open space will be better for the boxer. The boxer has superior striking ability, and the wrestler is the superior grappler. In the end, the rules and venue (as well as the quality of competitors) determine the outcome. Putting both wrestling and striking together makes for a brawl, and some people like to watch that, and some do not. If the money in MMA increases a lot, you may see pro boxers cross training to compete. Back to Ali. If he cross trained in kicking and wrestling before a MMA match, he would then be very well prepared. The answer would still be "possibly", but Ali would have a very good chance of winning. I would bet on him in this case. My final word would be that wrestling and boxing are two different sports, and MMA is its own area as well. Examine carefully the rules in all these events, and you will see that there is no ultimate fighting competition because the rules favor certain styles, and exist to limit injuries. UFC tried "no holds barred" early on (and even then, there were lots of rules, and the oactagon clearly favored jiu jitsu, no surprise given who started UFC) and it did not work, so, lots more rules were added. A rule-free event will never happen, so all these events are just entertainment. If you like tactics and grappling, Judo or wrestling is your game. Striking, boxing is king. A brawl, MMA is your game. Mixing them up is like asking who will win, a tennis or a badminton player. So, enjoy.

Answer 3

Both Klitschko brothers could beat Ali. Lennox Lewis could also. Pretty much all for the same reasons. All 3 fighters possess the power to punish and possible even eventually KO Ali. All have the height and reach to get in whenever they want. Lewis and Wladimir K, under Steward's training, fight too smart to fall into Ali's game or get KO'd by Ali. Wlad K has the most devestating jab I've ever seen any boxer throw in the history of boxing, and jabs are the easiest punches to throw and land. Ali was definetely one of, if not the, the smartest fighter in his era. But I would say these 3 are the smartest of this era and have eclipsed the original idea of fighting smart, something that Ali created.

Answer 4

The best who would have had a chance if he would have fought Ali in Ali's prime would have been Larry holmes.
I know that they did fight, but Ali was way past his prime.
This would have been a good fight probably the first of a trilology. Ali wins 2of 3.

Answer 5

Ric, Frazier always gave Ali trouble. Marciano is a Frazier like fighter. I could see Marciano doing to Ali what Frazier did in the first fight and then Ali winning a next fight. I agree with the Jack Johnson comment. Johnson could match Ali in most things.

Answer 6

When he was coming up I thought lots of the top fighters would beat him. Cooper gave him his toughest fight. He wanted to quit against Liston, before Liston quit. The longer he fought the more I realized how great he was. He fought all of the contenders, the ones who Patterson refused to fight. He beat all of them. He was the fastest heavyweight I have ever seen. Any one can be beaten. He could adapt to styles, and in his prime he cleaned out the division. It is impossible to say who from outside his era that could have beaten him, but it makes a good question.

Answer 7

Ali was not unbeatable. Frazier, Norton and Young proved that.
Mike Tyson , in prime, would have been hard.
Vitali Klitschko is very underrated.
Talents like Greg Page, Riddick Bowe fell well short of potential. A number of guys could have had their good shot at him.

Answer 8

I know im in the minority but i recon Tyson could have beaten Ali. Tyson fought similarly to Fraiser but was alot better in my opinion, if Frasier could beat Ali surely Tyson would have a good chance. Also Ali seemed to fight better against taller opponents, he seemed to struggle more against the shorter guys.

Answer 9

There is only one man that could have beaten Ali in his prime
Joe Louis

Answer 10

I honestly don't think anyone would beat him but I would probably give Lennox Lewis the best shot. He has the size, and the power to have a chance. Not to mention it would take a genius like Emanuel Stewart to take advantage of Ali's weaknesses and tendencies......Lennox would still get his *** beat though.