George Foreman is regarded by many as one of the greatest heavyweight boxers of all time.
The heavy-handed Texas native began his professional career back in 1969, shortly after he captured an Olympic Gold Medal at the 1968 Summer Games in Mexico City.
His tenure would go on to stretch 30 years, where he claimed the world heavyweight championship on two occasions. His crowning moment came in January 1973 when he knocked out Joe Frazier in the second round of their heavyweight showdown in Jamaica.
Just over 18 months later, Foreman faced Muhammad Ali in the iconic ‘Rumble In The Jungle’ which took place in Kinshasa, Zaire.
Despite being the heavier puncher of the pair, ‘Big’ George fell victim to the infamous ‘rope-a-dope’ style of Ali, who stopped him in the eighth round of their historic battle.
Speaking in an interview on YouTube, Foreman revealed details of how close he was to facing ‘The Greatest’ in a rematch, claiming Ali would have only fought him again on one condition.
“He called me once and we talked on the phone about doing a match. I’ll do the match but you’ve got to hire Dick Sadler. I said I’ll never work with Sadler again. He didn’t want to fight me. He brought up Dick so he had a good reason not to fight me.”
Despite making these initial claims, Foreman later revealed on social media that he could not have beaten Ali as he claims ‘The Greatest’ would have found a way to win no matter what.
“Once in the ring with the great Ali was enough for me. If I’d changed my approach back then he’d [have] another plan. Nothing beats some fighters but time.”
Ali retired from boxing shortly after suffering defeat at the hands of Trevor Berbick in 1981. After a brave battle with Parkinson’s Disease, ‘The Greatest’ passed away in 2016 at the age of 74.
