Joe Frazier - a Tribute to a True Great

Boxing fans everywhere are mourning the death of a true great heavyweight boxer of our time. American Joe Frazier died after a brief battle with liver cancer. Frazier was 67 and died on November 7, 2011.

Frazier established himself as the world heavyweight champion and held the prestigious boxing title from 1970 to 1973. During his career Frazier was tough to beat and enjoyed knocking out his opponent. Frazier had 37 fights in his career and won 32 of these. Of his 32 wins, 27 were knock-outs. Of his remaining fights four were losses and one was classed as a draw.

However, Frazier will probably be best remembered for his bouts against another boxing great. That is none other than Muhammed Ali. The duo had three classic duels. Frazier was in fact the first boxer to beat Ali, when the two met in 1971. Ali though had his revenge on Frazier by winning the other two bouts.

The best known of these battles took place in the Philippines in 1975. The fight was known as the "Thrilla in Manila," the fight went on for 14 rounds. Frazier received a bit of luck in the 1964 Olympics. He actually was knocked out in the trials, but injury prevented his victor from appearing at the Olympics. Joe Frazier probably didn't believe his luck when he was called up to the USA squad as a replacement. Expectations were probably low, given that Frazier was only a late replacement.

However, Frazier was no ordinary boxer and certainly did not disappoint. In fact, he went all the way to win gold at the 1964 Tokyo Olympics. No one can really disagree that Joe Frazier had a wonderful career and can be a true inspiration to current and future boxers all around the world. Frazier ended up retiring in 1976, shortly after that famous fight with Ali. However, he made a mini comeback in 1981; it didn't last very long though, in fact he only had one fight and he then retired for good. We miss you Joe, but your legacy lives on.

James Kent is freelance sports journalist with an interest in many sports and he writes on multiple subjects. He has been a boxing fan for many years and keeps an eye on all the latest developments in the sport.

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