“He could’ve beat me,” Muhammad Ali once showered huge praise on ‘true KO artist’ Rocky Marciano

Muhammad Ali admits that Rocky Marciano's relentless, brawling fighting style might have been his greatest challenge.

“He could’ve beat me,” Muhammad Ali once showered huge praise on ‘true KO artist’ Rocky Marciano

Muhammad Ali showers praise on Rocky Marciano (Image via: X)

Muhammad Ali is one of the greatest boxers of all time. However, he was not undefeated in his professional career. Only a select few legends of the game ended their career undefeated. Amongst them are Rocky Marciano, Joe Calzaghe, Andre Ward, and Floyd Mayweather Jr.

Alan Hubbard of Sports Magazine once asked Ali who in boxing history would be his toughest stylistic matchup. This is what Ali replied:

The toughest fight would be the man(Rocky Marciano) who was the hardest to knock out. What he's got is a style, and a fellow who had no style, just the bull's rock and monster. He was trouble. I think, not a great fighter scientifically, just a mauler, a brawler. One face, no zane off, he kept coming. He just had his own style, was courageous. He wasn't as great as me when it's beautiful, everybody knows that. But I don't know if I would have beaten him due to his style and my style. He could have outpointed me, could have knocked me down, he could beat my ass.
Muhammad Ali via Sports Magazine
YouTube video

Marciano was the NYSAC, NBA, and The Ring heavyweight champion from 1952 to 1955. Marciano was a KO artist, and according to Ali, Marciano was the worst stylistic matchup for him. This was due to Marciano’s iron chin and brawling style. Aside from Marciano, Ali has showered praise only on Joe Louis, Sugar Ray Robinson, and Mike Tyson. Interestingly, Marciano did not find Ali good at boxing.

FS Video

Marciano died at a relatively younger age of 46 in a plane crash. Ali and Marciano have met before and were cordial with each other. At a time when racism was blatant, Marciano showered immense respect to his fellow boxers, irrespective of the color of their skin. As such, the black community in the US deeply respected Marciano. Ali vs. Marciano was a dream fight for many boxing purists.

Related: “A fellow who had no style,” Muhammad Ali once revealed his desire to test himself against Rocky Marciano

The knockout power of Rocky Marciano

Rocky Marciano is one of the greatest boxers of all time. However, he did not have the technique and flair of other boxers who are amongst the greatest of all time. Marciano won fights through sheer will, determination, power, and an iron chin.

Rocky Marciano (Image via: X)

Marciano was a very small heavyweight. He stood 5 feet 10 inches tall with a 67-inch reach. However, he compensated with power for what he lacked in size and reach. Marciano competed 49 times professionally. He was undefeated with 43 KO victories. Moreover, his 87.8 knockout-to-win percentage is the highest in heavyweight boxing history.

Marciano has knockout victories over Jersey Joe Walcott, Roland La Starza, Ezzard Charles, Joe Louis, Don Cockell, and Archie Moore, all formidable names in boxing at the time. Moreover, Marciano is one of the many inspirations behind the iconic movie character Rocky Balboa.

In case you missed it