Ali was famed for his speed and technical skills, while Foreman's raw power was his greatest strength. Ali did not hurry to set up a rematch, making title defenses against unheralded opponents such as Jean Pierre Coopman and Richard Dunn.

However, as King did not have the money, and was not welcomed to stage an event of such a profile in the United States, he began seeking an outside country to stage and sponsor the event. Foreman also stated: "Then, in 1981, a reporter came to my ranch and asked me: 'What happened in Africa, George? This was notable as it seemed that close-range fighting would inevitably favor Foreman and leave too great a chance that Ali would be stunned by Foreman's powerful haymakers. In 2012, The Daily Telegraph reported Foreman's declaration: "We fought in 1974, that was a long time ago.George Plimpton was part of the press corps, covering the fight for Sports Illustrated, and later featured it in detail in the book Shadow Box (1993). Featherweight: Terry Rondeau of Pittsfield, Massachusetts, former New England featherweight champion, was introduced in the ring before the Osborne vs.

Foreman rose to one knee but referee Zack Clayton signaled the end of the fight before Foreman got to his feet. Some sources estimate that the fight was watched by as many as one billion television viewers around the world, [6] [7] becoming the world's most-watched live television broadcast at the time. B. King, Miriam Makeba, The Spinners, Bill Withers, The Crusaders, and Manu Dibango, as documented in the 2008 film Soul Power. Ali pounced as Foreman tried to pin Ali on the ropes, landing several right hooks over Foreman's jab, followed by a five-punch combination, culminating in a left hook that brought Foreman's head up into position and a hard right straight to the face that caused Foreman to stumble to the canvas.In season 2 episode 13 of the NBC series NewsRadio, Matthew makes a bet with Joe on the boxing match unaware it had already taken place over two decades prior.