When he faced off with Muhammad Ali at San Diego’s Sports Arena in March 1973, Ken Norton was a 5-to-1 underdog. Ali thought the fight against the virtual unknown would be a cakewalk. But the 6-foot-3-inch, 210-pound heavyweight proved to be a formidable opponent. “Norton was unorthodox,” said Gene Kilroy, Ali’s former business manager. “Instead of jabbing from above like most fighters he would put his hands down and jab up at Ali.” He broke his opponent’s jaw during the 12-round battle, handing Ali the second defeat of his career. Norton visited his adversary afterward in the hospital, where Ali reportedly said he would never fight him again.
Yet six months later, Ali took his revenge, narrowly defeating the Jacksonville, Ill.–born Norton in California. Ali praised Norton after the rematch, saying he was better “than any other fighter I’ve fought, except maybe Joe Frazier.” The two met for a final showdown at Yankee Stadium in September 1976. “Norton pounded a lackluster Ali, who failed to move and use his trademark foot speed,” said the New York Daily News. The crowd booed when judges awarded Ali a controversial but unanimous victory. “I was never the same fighter after that,” Norton said. “I never trained so hard again, never put the same feeling into it.”
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