MYTHICAL MATCHUP: ROCKY MARCIANO VS. JOE FRAZIER
Fernandez: “Joe stopped Jerry Quarry on cuts but could not floor him for the count. No one could. And the 195-pound Marciano tonight is proving to be a more rugged and powerful foe than both Bonavena and Quarry, but Joe is slicing him up with those concussive hooks.” Scully: “I was up at Marciano’s camp, and they told me he trains all year and stays at 205 pounds but chose not to drop below 195 for this shootout. Rocky’s hurting Joe but he better do something to end the fight quick, or they will stop the fight on that cut eye. Going blind is not worth any fight.” ROUND 6 Marciano comes out to do or die. Frazier presses Rocky, who catches Joe once again with the Suzie Q. Frazier hits the canvas but jumps up with no quit, just as he did with Foreman. He rolls in to attack, not to defend, pounding Rocky with everything he has left, but he catches another over-the- top right hand on the forehead and takes a knee again. He bounces up immediately, gets the eight count and barrels into Marciano like a freight train, dragging Rocky into a savage bloodbath. Marciano fights back like a demon, just as he did in his rematch with Ezzard Charles when his nose was nearly split in two, but this time the cut is even worse – worse than the bloody facial lacerations Henry Cooper suffered in his first bout with Ali. Rocky begins to sag toward the canvas but refuses to go down. Finally seeing enough, Kelly steps in and stops the fight. No one objects. The crowd does not boo, but collectively chants “REMATCH! REMATCH!” as the doctors examine Rocky, who was still fighting back at the stoppage. Michael Buffer signals the timekeeper to keep ringing the bell to quiet the crowd. “Referee Wayne Kelly stops the contest on a TKO. The time is two minutes and seven seconds of the sixth round. The winner and heavyweight champion of the world: SMOKIN’ JOE FRAZIER! “Now, how about a standing ovation for two of the greatest heavyweight champions who ever lived! They gave it their all in the ring tonight.” When the five-minute standing ovation stops, Goossen is standing mid-ring with Frazier, whose face is badly swollen. Marciano and his corner have left the ring with the doctors. Goossen: “Joe, how do you feel?” Frazier: “Rocky gave me the toughest fight I ever had, and right now I feel like I got hit by a truck. No one could keep Rocky on the deck. I hit him with shots that would drop a steer in a slaughterhouse, and I ought to know. He just kept coming at me. His right-hand power is the hardest I ever felt, different than anyone else’s. They were grazing shots and still dropped me. “I hope Rocky is OK, and I look forward to our rematch.”
him punch for punch, just a little slower than last round. Kelly yells “Bell!” to end the round. 10-9 Marciano FRAZIER CORNER: Joe: “Jesus, he’s stronger than all of them. It’s like hitting a brick wall.” Futch: “Get your shots off, then pivot out and be careful moving in again on him. Keep working him up and down.” ROUND 3 Joe attacks with vicious body shots but Marciano comes right back with his own body attack. One right hand gets in under the heart, and Frazier’s face shows he is hurt by it. Marciano is all over Joe now, but Rocky is careless and gets stunned by a vicious left hook to the side of the head. He takes a knee for a count of two. Kelly continues the count to eight with Rocky standing, then waves them back in. Marciano braces for the follow-up attack and nails Frazier with the Suzie Q – and down goes Frazier. Joe gets up shaky at four, takes Kelly’s mandatory eight count and nods he is OK. The noise in the Garden is unreal. Marciano swarms his wobbled foe, but Frazier fights back at the bell. COMMENTATORS: Goossen: “This is the greatest fight I’ve ever seen.” Fernandez: “Round of the year. Just unbelievable.” Scully: “The determination and stamina on display here tonight makes me wonder if both can keep it up.” 10-9 Marciano (the knockdowns cancel each other out) FRAZIER CORNER: Futch: “You’re giving him a little too much punching room. Take up the slack and go to work on him.” ROUND 4 Frazier comes out rock-solid and reinvested. He is bobbing and weaving – exploding at all angles against Rocky – as he did against Quarry and Chuvalo. One left hook leaves a gaping cut on the side of Rocky’s right eye. Marciano leans in, pressing his bloody face into Frazier’s shoulder while digging into the midsection. He matches Joe punch for punch to the body. Frazier can’t seem to land another hook to the same spot. Marciano clubs Joe with jolting shots wherever he can land them, drawing a warning from Kelly, who calls time to scold Rocky about punching on top of the head. Kelly quickly looks at the cut eye area and lets the fight continue. Joe steps straight back to get a look at the cut eye himself and Marciano wobbles him with a left hook. In disobeying Futch’s advice about pivoting out, he was
caught with a vicious hook, the kind that first dropped Joe Louis. Marciano keeps his attack up and drops Frazier with another Suzie Q while coming out of a crouch. Frazier jumps up at five and takes the mandatory eight. Kelly waves them on. Joe attacks out of desperation as they exchange wildfire in mid-ring. Frazier catches Rocky coming out of a weave with a right hand to the body and left hook to the jaw, forcing Marciano to take a knee. He makes it up at four and the bell rings. The Garden is in such a state of bedlam, no one could hear the count. 10-9 Frazier (the knockdowns cancel each other out) MARCIANO CORNER: Goldman is working on the cut, but it looks bad. ROUND 5 Marciano is fighting desperately to avoid a TKO via the cut eye. He is punishing Frazier with everything in his arsenal. Joe
fights back but is staggering from the onslaught. Frazier lands a desperation right hand and breaks open the cut, causing an arterial spray of blood to splash over the first row at ringside. Despite the blood flooding into his right eye, Marciano lands hard right hands that cause Frazier to stagger back to the ropes by his own corner. Both fighters are clearly hurt from their nonstop mutual attacks. Frazier, coming out of a weave, nails Marciano with another left hook, worsening the cut even further, but they remain in the trenches, exchanging thunderous punches. The exhausting output by both fighters has the crowd on its feet again. Kelly pulls them apart at the bell. COMMENTATORS: Goossen: “Frazier is doing damage but he can’t get Marciano out of there. It’s like his fights with Bonavena. As a young contender, Joe had to settle for a 10-round split decision after getting up from two knockdowns in the second round. Then he went 15 rounds with Oscar in the rematch. Some guys just can’t be knocked out. Is Marciano one of them? That’s the question.”
82 RINGMAGAZINE.COM
RINGMAGAZINE.COM 83
Made with FlippingBook - Online magazine maker