Muhammad Ali vs. Alfredo Evangelista

The Parade of Champions

Date	May 16, 1977
Venue	Capital Centre, Landover, Maryland, US
Title(s) on the line	WBA, WBC, and The Ring undisputed heavyweight championship
Tale of the tape
Boxer Muhammad Ali Alfredo Evangelista Nickname "The Greatest" Hometown Louisville, Kentucky, U.S. Montevideo, Uruguay Purse $2.7 million $85,000 Pre-fight record 53–2 (37 KO) 14–1–1 (11 KO) Age 35 years, 3 months 22 years, 5 months Height 6 ft 3 in (191 cm) 6 ft 1+1⁄2 in (187 cm) Weight 221 lb (100 kg) 209 lb (95 kg) Style Orthodox Orthodox Recognition WBA, WBC and The Ring undisputed Heavyweight Champion WBA No. 8 Ranked Heavyweight WBC No. 10 Ranked Heavyweight
Result
Ali wins via 15-round unanimous decision (71-65, 72-64, 72-64)

Muhammad Ali vs. Alfredo Evangelista was a professional boxing match contested on May 16, 1977, for the undisputed heavyweight championship. The fight was held in the Capital Centre before a crowd of over 12,000 at the Capital Centre, along with a prime time broadcast on ABC.

Background

This was Muhammad Ali's ninth title defense during his second title reign, and the first since his third bout with Ken Norton. This close and controversial fight happened over seven months ago, representing the longest break the champion had taken in between title fights.

Alfredo Evangelista was a young and relatively inexperienced fighter, he had scored eleven knockouts in just fourteen victories in just over a year, and suffered only one defeat. By 1977, Evangelista began entering the heavyweight top ten rankings, and before the fight was ranked eighth by the WBA and 10th by the WBC.

Despite the challenger's formidable left hook, Ali and his team expected an easy victory. Despite the confidence, Ali did make sure to properly train and slim down after having gained significant weight in the time off between fights.

The Fight

The fight proved to be another difficult defense for the champion. Evangelista was able to go the distance with Ali, and managed to land his powerful left hook on several occasions, but only stunned the champion twice (in the sixth and eighth round). Ali heavily used his rope-a-dope tactic, mixed in with his use of the shuffle and jab to outmaneuver the challenger. On several occasions Ali landed effective combinations and even came close to shutting out the challenger, but was unable to knock him out.

The longer the fight lasted, the bolder Evangelista got, but Ali ultimately won the fight by unanimous decision. Ali had effectively out landed Evangelista in punches, particularly in jabs, but the challenger landed more power punches and was seen as the aggressor by the crowd, who booed the decision.

Aftermath

Ali won the bout through a unanimous decision on points (71–65, 72–64, 72–64).

Quotes

"I'm sorry, we televised it" Howard Cosell doing the bout for ABC who later said that this was one of the worst bouts he's ever seen.

"I'm 35 and I danced for 15 rounds, it's a miracle". Ali after his bout with Evangelista.

Undercard

Confirmed bouts:

Winner	Loser	Weight division/title belt(s) disputed	Result
Alfredo Escalera	Carlos Becerril	WBC World Junior lightweight title	8th-round KO.
Roberto Durán	Javier Muniz	Welterweight (10 rounds)	Unanimous decision.
Tyrone Everett	Delfino Rodriguez	Lightweight (10 rounds)	4th-round TKO.
Jody Ballard	Dave Wilson	Heavyweight (8 rounds)	Unanimous decision.
Ira Martin	Johnny Blaine	Heavyweight (6 rounds)	3rd-round KO.
Wendell Bailey	Alex Carr	Heavyweight (6 rounds)	2nd-round KO.

Broadcasting

Country	Broadcaster
Australia	Nine Network
Brazil	Band
Canada	CTV
France	TF1
Germany	ARD
Japan	TBS
Mexico	Televisa
Philippines	RPN 9
Spain	TVE
United Kingdom	BBC
United States	ABC