Joe Frazier

Guide Note

Joe Frazier is a former heavyweight boxing champion from South Carolina. He fought three fights with Muhammad Ali, culminating into the world-famous "Thrilla in Manila" in the Philippines where he lost to Ali for the second time.

Fast Facts

1. Born: January 12, 1944
2. Birthplace: Beaufort, SC
3. Smokin' Joe
4. Height: 5'11"
5. Reach: 73"
6. Fights: 37
7. Knockouts: 27
8. Movies and TV shows Joe Frazier starred in as himself: 29

1. 1960s: Middles Atlantic Golden Gloves heavyweight champ for three years
2. 1964: Won the heavyweight gold medal in the Olympics
3. 1968: Became the New York State champion
4. 1970: Became the World Boxing Association (WBA) heavyweight champion
5. 1971: Defended title against Muhammad Ali at Madison Square Garden
6. 1972: Defended title against Terry Daniels and Ron Stander
7. 1974: Lost to Ali after a decision in a 15-round match in Madison Square Garden
8. 1975: Lost to Ali after a decision in a 14-round match in Manila known as the "Thrilla in Manila"

Pulitzer Prize-winning writer David Halberstam wrote of the Ali-Frazier match-up: "Technically the loser of two of the three fights, [Frazier] seems not to understand that they ennobled him as much as they did Ali, that the only way we know of Ali's greatness is because of Frazier's equivalent greatness, that in the end there was no real difference between the two of them as fighters, and when sports fans and historians think back, they will think of the fights as classics, with no identifiable winner or loser. These are men who, like it or not, have become prisoners of each other and those three nights."¹