I am sorry - but Wepner lost through technical knockout against Foreman after three rounds and against Liston after nine rounds through surrender. Still a good performance.
He was a man who couldve well been a champion but just so happened to fight in the most competitive time in boxing with the greatest boxers ever,the fact he even made a mark in such a talented era in the sport is a feat in itself
And out of the three fights with the legends he was only knocked down once... I wanna see the other two fight now... Ali actually looked gassed by the end as well...
2 месяца назад
I've seen tons of people use "who's" when "whose" would be correct. I've never seen it the other way around. Not trying to be a grammar nazi here, just never seen that.
Chuck Wepner who fought both Sonny Liston and George Foreman said, *“Sonny made George look like Mr. Friendly!”* Chuck also said, *"Getting hit by Sonny was like getting hit by a baseball bat."* Chuck wasn’t exaggerating, as he walked out of that fight with a broken nose, a broken cheek bone and 72 stitches!
@@thediaz07makes sense in a literal way: you get patched up in the locker room or med room, not in the ring. But more important to me is how on earth Wepner managed to stay standing against Liston and Foreman, both of which can _deform punching bags_
Chuck Wepner is a friend of my family, he's one of the friendliest and funniest people you could ever meet, and I'm thrilled to see you covered this match as fairly as you did for such a large and intelligent audience. While I appreciate the Rocky franchise as a fan of good cinema, I'm disappointed with how Stallone distanced his film and his character from their obvious inspiration. So it's really great to see people witnessing the story the way it actually happened, from someone so well-versed in the fighting arts, in such an exciting and well-crafted video. EDIT: Oh and don't sleep on the 2016 film Chuck, starring Liev Schreiber and Naomi Watts.
I call myself a fight fan but had no idea about this fight. The way you told the story had me at totally engaged. I have been a fan for years. Just showing my appreciation.
Thank you! The fight is definitely under rated, I've been wanting to make the video for years so had some time to think about how to do it. Glad you enjoyed!
At least they give the early viewers something nice to look at lmao But seriously I've talked with RU-vid about it and they told me it's on me, so I just clear them out on each and every video. Ridiculous!
@@TheModernMartialArtist RU-vid could stop it but they don't because it would eliminate a massive slice of their traffic numbers and be an admission that they were knowingly complicit about enabling the same stuff Facebook has been under scrutiny for allowing in the political realm et al.
@@geargeekpdx3566 I bet you're exactly right, kind of how Amazon allows pirates to sell other people's books without their consent or profit.but they just "can't figure out how to get it to stop" 🙄
@SanityTV_Last_Sane_Man_Alive Do not reply to this comment anyone who happens upon it. If you only see this after, delete your comment. Not worth your time to waste it here.
@@ImBarryScottCSS I will agree he did go the distance with the goat but i can not forgive him for using rabbit punches even if you are trying to win you are severely damaging a person with those hits
Yeah he became a bit of a celebrity because of the fight and was able to leverage that, which he definitely deserved after all the effort he put in here lol
@@GavinFox-uk9sn MMA wasn't around until the 90's but Wepner fought a Japanese wrestler and he fought Andre the Giant. It was a predecessor to MMA.Edit: also in Rocky this is why Balboa faces Hulk Hogan.
I think having an iron chin is one of the more underrated attributes a boxer can have. Just the ability to be able to take a good shot and awnser with 2 or 3 more is amazing to watch
@@WhiskeyMyersourit also makes some people overconfident in their ability to just take power punches and neglect their defence a recent example would be Ngannou against Joshua with Ngannou going in certain that he could take anything AJ could give him and being very wrong (bad example I know as Ngannou is from an MMA background but it's the most recent I can think of)
@@TheModernMartialArtisthave you ever thought about making a side channel analyzing film? Would love to your breakdowns on something like Raging Bull or other non sports related movies
As a fighter the moment you realize you are going to be in for a long night is when you hit your opponent with your best stuff, and he just keeps coming like a runaway freight train. Chuck Wepner was a fighter's worst nightmare. We'll never know if he could last 15 rounds with Mike Tyson however, he faced the likes of George Forman, a fighter known for packing serious power in his punches. That fact that Foreman could not knock Wepner out says a lot about how tough this dude was. Ali was lucky he didn't suffer an upset defeat. He totally underestimated Wepner's ability to take a punch.
As dirty as a fighter he could be, his spirit was legit. Glad Muhammad was able to be pushed like this and power through! You’re only the Greatest if you Fight for it🔥
Yeah he had heart, but was dirty. I can't believe he inside leg kicked him. This was a fight Ali was supposed to win, which is always the hardest fights. Ali was a legend.
He certainly was a dirty fighter.And I don't think anyone actually believes that punch would have knocked Ali down down if Wepner hadn't been standing on his foot
4 times in his career to my knowledge Chuck Wepner was knocked down in a career with 9 TKO/RTD stops out of 14 career losses = 26-14-2, KO's 17. Wepner said in an interview "I was a big bleeder. I had 328 stitches in my career. My nose was broken nine times in 16 years. And, uh, it never fazed me, you know" Buster Mathis stopped Chuck Wepner in the 3rd round after Mathis had floored Wepner for an eight-count in the opening round and opened a cut over Wepner's right eye later in the session. Wepner was unable to recover from the 1st round pounding and the fight was stopped by referee at 1:58 of the 3rd round. "Big" George Foreman hit Wepner at will with a snappy left jab, stinging left hooks and solid rights. Foreman staggered Wepner with a volley of punches in the 2nd round and cut him over the left eye. Early in the 3rd round, Foreman split the cut wide open with a series of punches, and the referee stopped the fight! "I'm happy to win, but disappointed it didn't go a few more rounds. I could use the work." - George Foreman. Sonny Liston had Chuck Wepner down from a right to the body in the 5th round. and after a lot of pummeling, the fight was stopped after the 9th round due to severe cuts over both of Wepner's eyes. He required 72 stitches and also suffered a broken nose and a cracked left cheekbone. This was Liston's last fight of his career. He was found dead six months later. His death was ruled to be from "natural causes", but many believe the so called evidences was nothing but boguses and the truth was that Liston was murdered! One long theory is that Liston was supposed to take a dive against Wepner, and killing him was payback for his failure to do so by his mobster connections. Joe Bugner came out and worked confidently behind the jab in the opening round as Wepner came forward and threw mostly wide punches. By the end of the 1st round, the left side of Wepner's face had already begun to show signs of wear from Bugner's jab. In Round 2, Bugner continued to pump his jab into Wepner's face with little defensive resistance. Toward the end of the round he landed a solid combination to the body. Midway through Round 3 a gash opened above the right eye of Wepner that almost immediately covered the side of his face with blood. Both fighters turned up their intensity and exchanged power shots for much of the remainder of the round. Following the round, Referee came over to view the cut and decided to call an end to the bout after 3 rounds of boxing. Ernie Terrell pound the bleeding, punchless Chuck Wepner through most of there fight, for the American heavyweight championship. The BS was that in New Jersey's boxing rules at the time, the decision on the fight result was made by the referee alone (?). Known as a cautious fighter, Terrell jabbed away at cuts over Wepner's right eye and left ear. Terrell tired in the late rounds but continued to land the fight's only solid punches. Both the Ring Magazine and Associated Press scored the fight easily for Terrell as much as 10 of the 12 rounds....and yet somehow Wepner was given a HUGE gift decision and Terrell was blantly robbed. "As long as you have people who are cheap in their moral dignity and code of ethics, you will have something that smells like Convention Hall here tonight." - Ernie Terrell. Wepner stated, "There is no way I'll get in the ring with Terrell again." - Chuck Wepner. Duane Bobick outboxed Chuck Wepner till he stoped him on bloody cuts in the 6th round. Club level fighter Horst Geisler knocked down Wepner once in the tenth round, and the referee later stops him at 1:19 on standing feetes. Club level fighter Jerry Tomasetti stoped Wepner with a 5th round TKO. Journyman Jerry Judge stoped Wepner with a 5th round TKO.
Wepner didn't inspire Rocky, Stallone stole his story and in the end settled for a confidential sum out of court. Stallone still carried on and made Rocky 2 copying Wepners fight with Andre the giant by fighting Hulk Hogan. Stallone never had a original thought and made his name and fortune by blatantly plagerising Chuck Wepners career and life.
@@troyocarrollyou’ll be surprised how many artists and creators plagiarise the works of others. Nothing is ever truly original. Every idea is essentially based off an archetypical concept or foundation or story or event that is adapted into something else to fit a specific narrative of the inspired. Thats just human nature man. I still commend Stallone for bringing Rocky to life. Taking a boxing match and turning it into a cinematic extravaganza that became iconic and a staple of the sports drama genre in film. Keep hating.
That was the greatest fight in history. I wasn't born then of course but I just watch the highlights of it. I always like how Ali do that jump while boxing. He's like Bruce Lee in the ring.
Yeah I would like you to talk about how fundamental heavy fighter like Naoya uses switch hitting to confuse opponents as well as how Willie pep or Crawford disguises switching Or Maybe video on how Hagler, Pac-Man, or Beterbiev switches mid combination.
Chuck Wepner was a legends and hung in there longer than anybody would all I remember speaking with him many times he was a big rough guy from the streets. He represented those streets well.❤
Or maybe Chuck was even motivated by it. Imagine knowing that you're up against one of the greatest boxers of all time. Of course, he wouldn't just give up; he wanted to leave his mark. What a great fighter!
That was fantastic, thank you..... Dude was tough ! "Nicknamed "The Bayonne Bleeder" due to repeated facial injuries in the ring, he took the name that was initially meant as an insult and made it his nom de guerre. In an interview with the BBC, Wepner said "I was a big bleeder. I had 328 stitches in my career. My nose was broken nine times in 16 years. And, uh, it never fazed me, you know".
Did Wepner ever say whether Liston or Foreman hit him harder? I'm dying to know how their power compares. Wepner is probably the only person still alive who fought them both.
Chuck Wepner who fought both Sonny Liston and George Foreman said, *“Sonny made George look like Mr. Friendly!”* Chuck also said, *"Getting hit by Sonny was like getting hit by a baseball bat."* Chuck wasn’t exaggerating, as he walked out of that fight with a broken nose, a broken cheek bone and 72 stitches!
He definitely said liston hit harder. Said it was like getting hit with a bat or a pipe or something. Can't remember it's been a while since I read it tbh but he did say liston for sure.
No doubt.. I'm sure everybody knows this but Chuck did not truly knock Ali down. As Ali backed up from the punch, Wepner stepped on his foot. As Ali's foot was pinned, he tripped backward.
Always droppin awesome videos. Content is heavy!! I'd love to see your breakdown on Laila Ali vs. Christy Martin "coal miner's daughter". deep backstory
Really enjoyed this video, and appreciate the focus on the fight itself, not endless lead-in about the personalities involved. Rocky is, hands down, my favorite movie. Your treatment of this subject was excellent and the presentation kept me on the edge of my seat. Chuck Wepner, defeated, scored a victory for the ages. Ali, arguably the greatest fighter who ever lived, a legend on par with man-god Achilles, only won the fight. He could not beat him. Therein lies Wepner's triumph.
Thanks for sharing. Learned of the Ali-Wepner fight long after I had seen the first "Rocky" film. Excellent discussion. Shawn R., Mo-Mutt Music/Sacred & Secular (and sports fan)
Martial art is essentialy a battle against yourself first. The opponent is here to make you understand what you are worth at this moment in time. That's why if you gave it all but still lose it doesn't matter. It's not failure, it's understanding what you can do to overcome that hurdle. My understanding of my journey in martial arts at least. Never seen this match up, didn't know that Rocky was inspired by Wepner. I was amazed by his will to keep going no matter what. That's very inspiring!
I love the James Brown commentary ringside, comparing Ali’s jab to a RAZOR, and to the great Ezzard Charles. James Brown, in his younger pre-fame days, also had been a boxer, and he carried that footwork into his legendary stage performances. I bet young James’ fists packed some serious punch ! 👊🏾
@@angelic_disappointment7889 millions were drafted and he gets a pass cause he was a Muslim/famous prizefighter. He didn’t help the poor and dying the war, in fact he ran from it.
@@MicahNstuff so? There was a lot of people who also dodged the draft, with Trump being another example. The U.S involvement in Vietnam was a mistake, and it was wrong on a lot of levels, men basically went there and died for no real reason
My father was a photographer that catalogued Wepner’s training camp. He showed me the book some years ago. Chuck was good friends with my cousin Louis so my father was also friends with him. I’ve heard this incredible story my entire lift.
I see Big George every now and then. His gym and church is around the corner from my house. He's got a gym, daycare center, community center on one side of the street, the other side is the church and his kid's houses.
I would add that Rocky Marciano was also a huge inspiration for Rocky as he first ever put on gloves at 25 and 6 years later was heavyweight world champion, after beating a boxer "Jersey Joe Wallcott" with some of the best footwork ever seen in the ring, so complex some of his moves still can't be replicated and in his previous fight had just done the best left hook knock out ever to this day, knocking out Ezzard Charles who had never even been knocked down in 77 fights let alone knock out with one punch. In terms of timescale it would be the equalivant today of Jake Paul knocking out Usyk (who ironically both Usyk and Loma uterlise some of Wallcotts footwork techniques) with one of the best knock outs the world has ever seen. Edit : there is a Troll commenter below that uses alt accounts to always type the same things under anything that mentions rocky Marciano. Why who knows.
True! My understanding is that he used Marciano's style for the film but made him a southpaw! And the hitting the meat was something Joe Frazier did. Lots of tributes in that movie.
Zhang weighs - 285 Bakole - 285 Joyce - 280 Briggs - 265 Ruiz - 265 Grant - 265 Fury - 262 Parker - 250 Foreman - 250 Vitali - 250 Peter - 250 Joshua - 250 Whyte - 250 Ibeabuchi - 245 Lennox - 245 Kabayel - 245 Wladimir - 245 Dubois - 245 Anderson - 245 Sanchez - 245 Ruddock - 245 Hrgovic - 245 Wardley - 240 Bowe - 240 Ortiz - 240 Witherspoon - 235 Tua - 235 Dokes - 235 Bruno - 230 Morrison - 230 Cooney - 230 Wilder - 225 Thomas - 225 Usyk - 223 Lyle - 220 Tyson - 218 Holmes - 218 Ali - 218 Liston - 218 *Moore - 175 lb LH champion from 1952 to 1962.* *Charles - 181 lb HW champion with lowest ever 42% KO's.* *Marciano - 184 lb HW champion with 67" flyweight reach.* Heavyweight was only 175 lbs back then. Moore & Charles best years were at MW (147 to 160) and LH (160 to 175). Moore had his first pro fight in 1935. He never weighed more than 165 until 1944. That's 9 years at MW. Marciano fought between 178 and 188 over 40 times and was 'Never' weight drained!! *If size don't matter why hasn't there been another 184 lb Heavyweight champion since little Rocky's little era 4 generations ago?*
Heavyweight was only 175 lbs back then. Rocky does not represent all Heavyweight categories and Super Heavyweight categories. The average Heavyweight today weighs 250 similar to Joshua and Parker. Zhang weighs 285, Rocky only 184 with 67" flyweight reach.
@@Sara_Sky_Sutton not one of them could throw 100 punches for 15 rounds and still be ready for another 10 rounds. He had the best conditioning of any heavyweight in history. He knocked out his heaviest opponent 253lbs in round 1. His punches were so hard they had to change the springness of boxing rings because boxers were hitting their head to hard off of it from Marciano's punches. He was never 175lbs, his lightest was 180lbs. The fact is back then you had to have the stamina for 15 rounds. The only reason heavyweights are the ridiculous weight they are now and so overweight is because stamina is no longer taken into account. It's hilarious you want him to be less well conditioned because of arbitrary targets. Not to mention, Due to the way a punch works which is velocity half Mass Times velocity squared as soon as mass starts reducing velocity. It reduces power. Archie Moore said "I hit rocky with the hardest punch I ever threw and all it did was make him angry" and the only other time he was ever knocked down was by that same punch that knocked out Ezzard Charles with a single punch and Marciano got up at the count of 2. Oh and by the way it doesn't matter how many alt accounts you make, you write in the same disjointed way, it is obvious you are the same marciano hater, you going to do the well he fought against people who lost next go on.v
@@Sara_Sky_Sutton yeah and the average heavyweight today can't go 3 rounds without tiring and have to have cool down rounds a concept that did not even exist back then. It was 15 rounds and you had to have the stamina for 15, 3 minute rounds. Now it' 12 rounds and you need to have stamina for six to eight, one and a half minute rounds.
My father was a football player at the University of Colorado at Boulder about this time, and he became friends with NFL All-Pro Lyle Alzado. For those of you who don't know, "Three Mile" Lyle was widely considered the toughest guy in the NFL of the 1970s--a time when only real men's men played football. A graduate of several reform schools, the street kid from New York famously said, "If I fought King King in an alley, only one of us is going home, and it ain't the monkey." And he could back it up. In 1977, the former Golden Gloves champion agreed to a "sparring match" at Mile High Stadium against Muhammad Ali for charity. My father sparred with him to help him get ready for his "fight" with, oh, the greatest boxer in history. "He was the scariest son of a gun I have ever met", my father likes to say. Imagine being so good at boxing, and so tough, that you can take on one of the toughest men in world history in just a sparring session, just for fun. That was how good Muhammad Ali was compared to the average man.
8:00 -- that was the round of the fight where Ali stopped being nice to Chuck. After that round, he gave Chuck Wepner such a beating it's amazing that Chuck didn't suffer permanent damage. I've seldom seen a man take such a beating in the final 5 rounds of a fight as Chuck did there. The fun and games ended.
They sort of did back then, Ali had gone through a list of guys who were top 20 all time earlier in his career and he was sort of fighting guys he assumed he could beat easily...but fights don't always turn out like they think. Then he fought that guy who wasn't even a heavyweight (Spinks?) and everyone was convinced he did it just so he could get the record for number of times "reclaiming" the belt. It was obvious that at some point a Norton or Holmes or Tucker or someone was going to catch him on the wrong day but he was doing more than just hanging around, he was defending the belt. People still thought he was ducking though.
@@TheModernMartialArtist LOL! If you haven't watched it, you MUST watch reruns of "Sanford and Son." I still laugh every time I watch an episode and I was literally alive when they aired new on prime time and am sure I saw them when they first did, though I was young and don't really remember specifically.
In the Rocky movie Apollo wasn't looking for a tune up fight. He had beaten every boxer with ease. He was looking for something to draw attention to his fights because everybody was getting bored of him winning with ease. So he came up with the idea of giving an unknown a chance to draw publicity.
Your technical breakdowns are top tier David, but your ability to tell a story is second to none!Great fun! Well done Chuck (rabbit punches aside tut tut), what a beast! But even past his prime on an off night, an out of shape Ali still looks like the slickest silkiest smoothest boxer I've ever seen, SRR, SRL, Sanchez included. However, I hope Angelo ripped him a new a-hole for that lazy camp and performance! Lol.
Agree on Liston but Foreman was knocking out EVERYONE already, only a few misses in his first 40 fights. Possible Foreman would have knocked him out cold if not for the cut, to be fair, but the footage is lost so we'll never know.
@@sugondese123 bruh foreman was still koed everyone, is a hell of a feat And that same foreman stated that liston was stronger than him even at old age
Wepner knocking down Ali is debatable, but the fact he lasted nearly 15 rounds against Ali is impressive as hell. I've heard about this story but I never new all the details till now. This was a very informative video Great job.
@@anybodycangetit-e1s That's why it's debatable, for people at the time who may not have noticed him stepping on Ali's foot were making a big deal out of it as though it was a legit knockdown. But my point was even though the knockdown wasn't legit, it was still impressive that Wepner did as well as he did against Ali.
You fight Joe Frazier and Sonny Liston and the only time you go down in your professional career is in the 15th round against Muhammad Ali… Jesus Christ
