Clay's first fight with Henry
Cooper began to make his legend. Shots of Cooper's bloodied
face and the quick thinking of Angelo Dundee probably kept
Clay's career on track.
The fight was scheduled for the
anniversary of the Battle of Waterloo. Cooper was a hero in
Britain and especially in London. Cooper was on old school
pro with a big left hook. Clay's description of Cooper as
'a tramp, a bum and a cripple,' did not endear him to the
British public, at least at first. The British newspapers
pronounced him 'unsporting.'
Undeterred, Cassius predicted
a fifth round win and then proceeded to visit various dog
tracks and night clubs for the benefit of the press. Clay
had not stinted on his preparation though, boxing almost 100
rounds in sparring with brother Rudy and Jimmy Ellis and running
miles through London's Hyde Park.
Jim Wicks, Cooper's streetwise
manager, had organized some sparring of his own, bringing
in Alonzo Johnson, who had taken Clay the distance in Miami,
to tune up Cooper. Johnson, not only had experience of Clay,
he could produce an uncanny imitation of Clay.
With Wembley Stadium full to
the rafter with fans cheering for Henry Cooper, the stage
was set. Clay entered the ring wearing a red robe and crown,
and he began regally. For the first three rounds he destroyed
Cooper, who was fit and game, but simply outclassed. Clay
began clowning around, every time Cooper was on the verge
of falling, he would step back and start dancing. Bill Faversham
shouted at angelo Dundee to stop him, but to no avail.
By the end of round four,Cooper
was bloodied and exhausted, his notoriously fragile skin sliced
open by Clay. On his very last legs Cooper threw a historic
punch, an example of Ernery's Ammer at its finest. It caught
Clay flush on the chin and sent him threw the ropes and on
to the apron on his backside. The huge 55,000 crowd roared
and Angelo Dundee could see Clay had gone. Clay somehow regained
his feet and stumbled forwards again, to be save by the bell
and Dundee's arms.
Desperate to buy his man some
time, Dundee alerted the referee to a split on Clay's gloves,
from which horsehair was protruding. The futile search for
a replacement gained Clay an extra minute on his stool. With
his powers of recovery, it was all Clay needed.
When the fight resumed, he began
to butcher Cooper, opening horrific gashes over bnoth eyes.
With Cooper effectively blinded, Clay launched a sustained
assault. The crow screamed at the referee to stop the fight,
which he did with 45 seconds left.
Dundee's quick thinking entered
boxing history, with the story and rumour being at the point
that Dundee cut the glove with a razor. Angelo Dundee had
actually noticed the split at the end of the first round and
had told Clay to keep his fist closed.After the knockdown,
he simply pushed a finger into it to open it a little more
and then showed it to the referee.
The fight had been dramatic and
Cassius Clay had become the most talked about boxer in the
game. In his dressing room after the fight he was visted by
Jack Nilon, manager of Sonny Liston. 'I've flown three thousand
miles to tell you we're ready,' Nilson said. Cassius was to
fight for the Heavyweight Title he believed was his destiny.
Watch video of Muhammad Ali vs
Henry Cooper fight:
