Joe Frazier, the first man to beat Muhammad Ali, dead at 67.

Once upon a time, there was no sport more glamorous, more tough, and more captivating than the heavyweight division of professional boxing.  These days, boxing is kind of a joke, but when you wanted to see the best of the best in the old days, you looked to the heavyweights, and Joe Frazier was one of the best heavyweight boxers of all time.  Former heavyweight champion of the world Joe Frazier died yesterday due to complications of liver cancer.  He has been in a hospice in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, in the final stages of the disease.  Now, he’s off to the big squared circle on the other side.

Joe Frazier, known as Smokin’ Joe, rose to fame as a heavyweight thanks to a seminal bout with Muhammad Ali in New York’s Madison Square Garden, in which Frazier bested the former Cassius Clay in 15 hard-fought rounds on the judges’ scorecards.  Frazier was the first man to beat Ali, and would later fight him in three other fights, including the famous Thrilla in Manilla.  Less well known, but just as impressive, were Frazier’s pair of fights against George Foreman, also for the heavyweight title.

In his fight career, Frazier amassed a record of 32 wins, 5 defeats, and 1 draw, including 27 wins by knockout.  Frazier also won a gold medal in the 1964 Tokyo Olympics in boxing.  He was 67 at the time of his death.

Tags: Smokin’ Joe Frazier, Joe Frazier, Joe Frazier dies of liver cancer, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, Thrilla in Manilla, Muhammad Ali, Ali Frazier fight, Joe Frazier dead, Joe Frazier obituary, boxing, sports, heavyweight boxing, George Foreman

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