The organization was seen as an extremist anti-white people hate group and opponents of desegregation and Martin Luther King Jr. Clays propensity for self-promotion and controversy seemed to fit in with the groups inflammatory rhetoric. Because of that, Cage may have thought Sonny was an informant and shot him with a hot dose as retribution. A lot of his life was mysterious and messy. [citation needed] At this time, the head coach of the St. Louis Golden Gloves team, Tony Anderson, stated that Liston was the strongest fighter he had seen. A dominant contender of his era, he became the world heavyweight champion in 1962 after knocking out Floyd Patterson in the first round, repeating the knockout the following year in defense of the title; in the latter fight he also became the inaugural WBC heavyweight champion. "I remember him telling me one day that he found himself watching boxing but he didn't like the way it made him feel," Knopfler said. I forgot about the rules." He also went with a new manager in 1958: Joseph "Pep" Barone, who was a front man for mobsters Frankie Carbo and Frank "Blinky" Palermo. Knopfler, 55, said inspiration for the Liston song has been growing for a long time. Sonny Liston had a controversial boxing career, winning 54 of 58 bouts from 1953 to 1970. What are you doing? For his part, Liston said that the referees inability to keep track of time doomed him, as he didnt know when to get up from the mat. Walcott never did pick up the count. A sudden violent combination delivered with 30 seconds left in the round electrified the crowd. The toxicology report said his body was too decomposed for the tests to be conclusive. ", The Liston song appears on an album called "Shangri-La." Muhammad Ali and Sonny Liston: The Controversial Fight Behind Their On this Wikipedia the language links are at the top of the page across from the article title. Who are the four people who knocked out Sonny Liston? Tale of the tape: Fight poster for Sonny Liston v Cassius Clay in 1964. . Liston's noticeably more muscular left arm, crushing left jab and powerful left hook lent credence to the widely held belief that he was left-handed, although he fought in an orthodox stance. But he spoke to his friend Resnick on the day of the fight and was told not to bet on the champion. [61] The new date was set for May 25, 1965. [66], Former champions Jack Dempsey, Joe Louis, Floyd Patterson and Gene Tunney, as well as contender George Chuvalo all declared they considered the fight to be a fake. "Sonnyboyliston | Race Record & Form | Racing Post", "Moonfire (1972), a film by Michael Parkhurst -Theiapolis", NYSAC World Heavyweight Champion - BoxRec, Lyrics to a song about Liston by Mark Knopfler, FBI Records: The Vault - Charles Sonny Liston, https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Sonny_Liston&oldid=1137950795, International Boxing Hall of Fame inductees, 20th-century African-American sportspeople, Articles with unsourced statements from February 2016, Articles with unsourced statements from August 2022, Articles with unsourced statements from December 2016, Pages with login required references or sources, Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike License 3.0, Hackman, Timothy. [8], Liston turned to crime and led a gang of thugs who committed muggings and armed robberies. Knopfler, who was born in Scotland and grew up in northern England, said Liston's story was "exciting subject matter because it's so mysterious." [99] (3) The mob promised Liston some money to throw the second Ali fight, but they never paid him. When he tried to muscle in for a bigger share, Conrad thinks his employers got him very drunk, took him home and stuck him with a needle. Tocco said that the living room furniture was in disarray, but the house did not yet smell of death. "When he first got to the big city, he was hanging out with a bunch of people who were just looking for trouble.". He also wrote that Liston's win over Patterson proved that "in a fair fight between good and evil, evil must win." (, Shaun Assael. that startles everyone in a 100 foot radius. To the rest of the world, it would be known as "The Phantom Punch." That shot, which Ali dropped Sonny Liston with on May 25, 1965, was far from a phantom. Very rare interview of Sonny Liston talking about how he got started in boxing, his fights with Williams and Patterson and his training routine. He cited Liston's inability to lift his arm: "There is no doubt that Liston's arm was damaged. Liston believed his date of birth to be May 8, 1932, and used this for official purposes[11] but by the time he won the world title an aged appearance added credence to rumors that he was actually several years older. Rocky Marciano, the former heavyweight champion, said that he appreciated the punchs strength upon re-examination. Rogin discounted speculation that Patterson had thrown the fight, writing: "The genesis of all this wide-eyed theorizing and downright baloney was the fact that many spectators failed to see the knockout blows. Charles "Sonny" Liston was born c.1930 into a sharecropping family that farmed the poor land of Morledge Plantation near Johnson Township, St.Francis County, Arkansas. Liston appears as a character in James Ellroy's novel The Cold Six Thousand. Like Dylan's subject, Rubin Carter, Knopfler's version of Liston is sympathetic. Sonny Liston | Boxing's Most Intimidating and Unwanted Champion The official time of the stoppage was announced as 1:00 into the first round, which was wrong. [48] The challenger, his arms held high in surrender, was demanding that the fight be stopped and Dundee, fearing the fight might indeed be halted, gave his charge a one-word order: "Run! [11][12][10][13][14] One writer concluded that Liston's most plausible date of birth was July 22, 1930, citing census records and statements from his mother during her lifetime. At one point, Clay was wiping his eyes with his right hand while extending his left arm"like a drunk leaning on a lamppost" Bert Sugar wroteto keep Liston at bay. He would not close in until the accumulated inside damage and Liston's own frustration had sapped the challenger's strength and will." [52][53] It was the first time since 1919when Jack Dempsey defeated Jess Willardthat a world heavyweight champion had quit on his stool. In a pre-fight poll, 43 of 46 sportswriters picked Liston to win by knockout. Cleveland Williams was the last person to defeat Liston and made $100,000 for his efforts. The previous month, Schreibauer had won a bronze medal in the European Championships. Sonny Liston Vs Floyd Patterson What If There Had Been A Third Fight Liston's wife also recalled that her husband would refuse basic medical care for common colds because of his dislike of needles. "[18], After Liston was released from prison on October 31, 1952, he had a brief amateur career that spanned less than a year. "He would do everything to avoid taking shots." Lennox is a conqueror? Wepner, who also fought George Foreman and Muhammad Ali, said after his career was over that Liston was the hardest puncher he faced. And it was probably for the best ticket-buyers didnt exactly get their moneys worth. Hearst Magazine Media, Inc. Site contains certain content that is owned A&E Television Networks, LLC. For me, the most fascinating thing about Liston was the fact that his birth date is unknown. "He was afraid of needles," echoed Father Edward Murphy. It was a good punch, but I didn't think I hit him so hard that he couldn't have gotten up. Im free to be who I want.. (2) Professional gambler Lem Banker insists that Liston was murdered by drug dealers with whom he'd become involved. Sports Illustrated predicted a Patterson victory in 15 rounds, stating: "Sonny has neither Floyd's speed nor the versatility of his attack. He allegedly later told an assistant that he took a dive because he was afraid of the consequences of beating Ali he thought it would put a target on his own back. Before he left for his bout with Clay, Sonny's training in Denver took him to some strange places. [94], On January 1, Liston's wife, Geraldine, called Johnny Tocco and said she had not heard from her husband in three days and was worried. "[35] Although largely illiterate through lack of schooling, Liston was a more complex and interesting individual than has often been acknowledged. Sports Illustrated writer Mort Sharnik said his hands "looked like cannonballs when he made them into fists." A grateful Liston found there was no need to give chase. Concert Preview/Interview: John Lodge of the Moody Blues on Reprising "Days of Future Passed . Clay brought Malcolm X along with him to Miami, and amid the controversy, the fight was almost canceled. "[75], Future world heavyweight champion George Foreman, who sparred with Liston after Foreman's amateur career, assessed Liston's jab as the most formidable he faced and Liston as the strongest man he encountered in the ring, describing Liston as having the most natural talent and skill. You've seen him before but probably didn't realize it because the most famous photo ever taken of Sonny was not at his best angle. On the album's lyric sheet, below the Liston song, Knopfler includes a famous quotation from Liston from 1962: "Some day, they're gonna write a blues for fighters. Soon, he was known as Cassius X, eschewing the last name given to his enslaved family by their owners. [56] Sports Illustrated writer Tex Maule wrote that Liston's shoulder injury was legitimate. "[96], Many people who knew Liston insisted he was afraid of needles and never would have used heroin. Anyone can read what you share. Boston: Little, Brown. This is a clip out of the \"The Other Side\" Documentary. Support this Channel:https://www.patreon.com/LegendsofBoxing Merchandise:LegendsofBoxing.redbubble.com I restore \u0026 colorize your projects, PayPal Donations: LegendsofBoxingYT@gmail.comThank you!________________________________________________________________________________ Credit Original B\u0026W Footage:https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2CLMlEpRb9wSonny Liston Interview uploaded by haNZAgodAll My YouTube ChannelsMy Main Channel \"Legends of Boxing\": https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC73ffQAknNEWJlRoFSWH_awMy Second Boxing Channel \"Legends of Boxing\": https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC8-QLrFyDnskqz5_z95mcOAMy History Channel \"Time Travel: Colorized Archive\": https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC29VFkNvVVi6_OzwFV2oTqQMy Documentary Channel \"Tales From The Past\":https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCZpFIIYrCc1lOHbG-fUo5vwMein Dokumentation Channel \"Geschichten aus der Vergangenheit\" (Tales From The Past in Deutsch) https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCXBfWoE1KVXEzh9d2NrwBhASocial https://www.instagram.com/legends_of_boxing1/ Reddit and its partners use cookies and similar technologies to provide you with a better experience. As the years passed and Liston's financial situation worsened, he got angry and told the mob he would go public with the story unless they gave him the money. Liston was particularly known for his immense strength, formidable jab, long reach, toughness, and his infamously intimidating appearance. ", Ali clearly did not think he knocked Liston out. The suspension was honored in all states. QUESTION 1 However, there were again rumors of alcohol abuse in training. Walcott then rushed back to the fighters, who had resumed boxing, and stopped the fightawarding Ali a first-round knockout victory. Was Pariah boxing legend Sonny Listons OD really a mob murder? [32] Ironically, Patterson's manager, Cus D'Amato, associated with racketeers and had his manager's license revoked by the New York State Athletic Commission for alleged misconduct in connection with the Floyd PattersonIngemar Johansson title fight in June 1959. Don't confuse shyness with dullness, Sonny was reluctant to talk to the press - the always painted a bad picture of him.Dwight Muhammad Qawi Braxton ATG Philly Joe Frazier Bernard HopkinsTags:pernell whitaker jersey joe walcott louis julio chavez evander holyfield lennox lewis felix sturm oscar de la hoya floyd mayweather miguel cotto marquez manny pacquiao pacman boxing boxer ko knockout tribute robbery mike tyson rocky marciano oscar de la hoya manny pacquiao foreman fight miguel cotto dead death muhammad ali cassius mike tyson clay lennox lewis eric morales barrera floyd mayweather fedor emelianenko ufc boxing ko k.o. "Nat Fleischer [editor of The Ring] was sitting beside McDonough and he was waving his hands, too, saying it was over." Governor John H. Reed of Maine stepped forward, and within a few hours the promoters had a new site: Lewiston, Maine, a mill town with a population of about 41,000 located 140 miles (230km) north of Boston. In his own words in Thomas Hauser's 1991 biography: "The punch jarred him. [35] Liston's victory was loudly booed. [103], Sonny Liston was featured in a novel "Girl Fighter" with a brief reference to his early life, his rise to WBC heavyweight champion and his eventual losses to Clay/Ali.[104]. At the IBHOF, the casts of Listons hands were bigger than Lennox Lewis' which were also gigantic. interview with Alex Haley in Muhammad Ali by Thomas Hauser. Furthermore, that count cannot be started until the fighter scoring the knockdown goes to and remains in a neutral corner. [70] There have been a number of unproven theories as to the background to the purported dive including that Liston was threatened by the Muslims, or agreed to lose in return for a share in the more marketable Ali's future purses. After Ali's win against Sonny Liston, he wouldn't . My man. said Liston's Philadelphia dentist, Dr. Nick Ragni. He talked of a fight with Joe Frazier, claiming, "It'd be like shooting fish in a barrel." The photo depicted Ali standing over his opponent, Sonny Liston, after delivering a final blow that knocked Liston to the ground. This is a place for friendly and civil debate about the greatest sport on earth. Sheed says that the punch and the knockdown "may have been genuine, but when referee Joe Walcott blew the count and gave him all evening to get up, Liston's rendition of a coma wouldn't have fooled a possum. "The public is not with me. Time magazine said Liston had worked himself into the best shape of his career. RARE Sonny Liston Interview before the first Ali fight 1964 in Color Legends of Boxing in Color 2.47K subscribers Subscribe 16K views 8 months ago Very Rare interview with Sonny Liston and. [39] Leading up to the fight, Liston was an 85 betting favorite, although many picked Patterson to win. The Devil And Sonny Liston. Sonny Liston Interview - YouTube We may earn commission from links on this page, but we only recommend products we back. Audiences at home were confused and outraged. We had a return bout clause with Clay, but if you say your guy just quit, who is gonna get a return bout? According to Liston's trainer, Willie Reddish, Liston cancelled a planned tour to Africa in 1963 because he refused to get the required inoculations. The FBI was on the hunt for evidence for match-fixing, given Listons mob ties mobsters still owned much of his fight promotion contract and the sports shady business model. In the 2001 film Ali, Liston was portrayed by former WBO Heavyweight Champion Michael Bentt. [34] Many African-Americans disdained Liston. "He had a left like Henry's hammer," Knopfler sings, "a right like Betty Bamalam.