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The city of Philadelphia has produced some really great fighters and will continue to do so. When I think of the Philadelphia fighter, I think of the toughness of the fighter, all the admirable things that come to mind. And perhaps no warrior from Philadelphia is more at one with the above adjective than Joe Frazier.

Frazier never stopped fighting that way, even when he took the hard road and collected millions of dollars as a result of the blood, sweat, and tears he shed not only in the ring but in the gym and beyond. Champions aren’t made in the ring, they’re just recognized there.Those who cheated early in the morning show up in the ring under bright light,” Joe once said), fighting in every ounce of his soul. every time.

Joseph William Fraser was born on this day in 1944 in Beaufort, South Carolina. Born into a hard-working family, young Joe had to deal with outdoor toilets, hard labor in the fields growing corn and watermelons on his family’s farm. , and strict discipline – “There’s no right way to do something wrong. There’s no wrong way to do something right.”

At an early age, Joe was fulfilling his goals in life. He is to become a world heavyweight champion like the great Joe Louis. In the early 1950s, the Frazier family managed to buy a small black-and-white television, and Joe and his father often watched games of greats like Sugar Ray, his Robinson, and Rocky, his Marciano, with neighbors and friends. I was watching His uncle described how Joe would become “the next Joe Louis”. Joe moved to Philadelphia and became The Fighter, synonymous with “the city of brotherly love.” Like another heavyweight legend before him in Marciano, Joe knew his shortcomings – lacking what could be described as silky boxing his skills, from a physical standpoint. In addition to – must be overcome with pure hard work and trust. About inner strength. Joe was doing a strong job.

At just 5 feet 11 inches, Joe has noticeably shorter arms than most heavyweights, so when Frazier is well within his opponent’s reach, he can injure himself with two or three punches. I had to develop a fighting style that would land the . Once inside, Joe went to work hard and relentlessly. A style like this could only be achieved through Frazier’s constant movement, and it was successful. This was achievable with a seemingly endless stamina built through grueling training sessions, and a rock in the jaw.Frazier’s first and most influential trainer, Yank Durham, has always been one of the best in his short Frazier career. was envisioned. Hitting three times as many punches as he landed himself is not the style to stay on top for long. Therefore, Joe should take each fight seriously. He won the world title, made as much money as possible while defending it, and then got out of it.

After winning the gold medal at the 1964 Olympics, Frazier began his professional career. It didn’t take long for Frazier’s devious left hook to get noticed. After 1964, the fact that Joe was partially blind in his left eye is not known. Speed In an accident while training with his bag, a piece of metal hit his Frazier in the eye. The secret remained undisclosed for many years. This fact makes many of Fraser’s achievements all the more surprising.

Nicknamed ‘Smokin’ Joe’ by Durham, Frazier went on an 11-game winning streak. Before a tough night comes in the steadfast form of Oscar Bonavena. In his first real test, this being his 12th fight, Joe was dropped by ‘Ringo’ twice his second during the hard 10 rounder. Frazier won a controversial close split decision.

Eddie Machen was then stopped, as was Doug Jones, and Joe beat tougher than tough George Chuvalo to take his 17th straight win. Then, in March 1968, Frazier won part of a split championship as world heavyweight champion Muhammad Ali was deported for refusing to serve in the Vietnam War. Smashing Buster Mathis (whom Joe replaced in the game in Tokyo), Joe won the vacant NYSAC heavyweight title.

Around this time, an eight-man elimination tournament was set up in which fighters such as Floyd Patterson, Jimmy Ellis and Jerry Qualley would battle it out for Ali’s vacant WBA title. Eddie Futch became Frasier’s co-trainer at this stage, and it was he who advised Joe not to enter the tournament. With wins over Manuel Ramos and Bonavena, Frazier finished his year in the points again.

Frazier went to war with Quarry in June 1969, stopping him at 7. Frazier then won his second belt at the age of 26, defeating his WBA tournament winner Jimmy Ellis with his 24-0 record. Frazier knew he wouldn’t be a true champion until he defeated Ali.

In March 1971, the “Battle of the Century” took place, creating one of the most brutal and fierce sporting rivalries in history. Ali was allowed to fight again, but moved too fast. Having won his two fights against former Frasier enemies Quarry and Bonavena, Ali felt ready to face Frasier at his peak.

The rest is history. In a gigantic fight that captured the attention of the entire planet, Frasier dug deeper than ever before and won a grueling and epic 15-round decision. Joe’s left hook in his 15th knockdown of him marked his victory. Frazier now he was THE champion.

Yank and Eddie almost certainly strongly suspected it, but no one knew it at the time. But Frasier will never be the same force again. With a 27-0 record and all the heavyweight titles, Joe could have retired. Instead, after two easy wins over decent enough fighters Terry Daniels and Ron Stander, Frazier made the disastrous mistake of agreeing to defend against the undefeated George Foreman. Did. Again, the rest is history.

Frazier was urged to call it a career. Instead, his very real hatred of Ali drove him on and Joe continued to fight. With a win over Fraser in a non-title fight rematch, Ali regained his crown in spectacular fashion by cutting Foreman down in the African jungle. A rubber match of rubber matches had to happen.

But at the time, Ali was on top of the world (again) while Frazier was beaten badly by Foreman and later fighting British tryer Joe Bagner. There was no idea that Ali-Frazier III was the absolute classic we all recognize today. But Ali, who had underestimated Joe in training for the fight in Manila, was forced to fight the battle of his life. For 14 brutal and damaging rounds, Ali and Frazier tried to kill each other. ‘Thrilla’ is one of the greatest fights he’s ever made, but it’s hard to watch even today when we know how the two greats met. Neither man ever made it to full health.

Ali scored a stop and Futch pulled out a near-blind Joe at the end of an uncomfortable round of 14. Frazier had two fights left. Before Cummings went home with a draw, he and the others felt they should have won. This is him in December 1981.

Only Ali and Foreman were able to defeat Frazier. But until his death, Joe believed he had “won all three” with Ali.

Frazier fought longer than he and Yank thought they would all years ago, and in the end he paid the price. there are no players. Today he would have been 79 years old.