Ali Bomaye!

Rumble in the Jungle: Muhammad Ali

October 30th, 1974, is an extremely important date for boxing fans all over the world. This date marks the historic sports event 'Rumble in the Jungle' between two excellent and outstanding boxers in history, namely George Foreman and Muhammad Ali. This day crafted the future careers for both opponents and was a crucial pivoting point of their lives. It was held at the 20th of May stadium. The audience was humongous, and the crowd of almost sixty thousand spectators added to the excitement and anticipation around one of the world's biggest and most grand boxing events. 

The event took place in the previously known Kinshasa, Zaire (modern-day Democratic Republic of Congo). Fans remember it as the most exhilarating and hyped sports event of the entire century. Not only was there a massive audience watching the two iconic athletes compete, but the show was also broadcasted on live television, giving it access to an unimaginable number of viewers, who sat at their homes, thousands of miles away. Records estimate that at least one billion viewers watched the live transmission at that time. This was the highest number for any live program broadcasted on Television at the time, and the record was unbroken for many years.

The huge suspense and thrill around the boxing fight were also because the two contesters came with huge titles on their shoulders. Their names were such that they did not need any introduction, and the idea of them facing each other in a boxing ring was magical and had an unwavering charisma around it. George Foreman was an undefeated heavyweight lift champion globally, and this was another event in his series of prior consecutive victories. 

On the other hand, was Muhammad Ali, a name that was chanted by hundreds and thousands of fans every time he stepped on the street of the boxing ring. He was also the former heavyweight champion until George Foreman won his title. Although it was hard to bet on any contestant because both of them had their strong suits, the tables were somewhat tilted towards George Foreman, simply because he had been undefeated world champion at the time. 

Naturally, Muhammad Ali was an underdog in this situation, but the impatience of spectators grew as they saw both opponents prepare aggressively to face each other in the boxing ring.

Muhammad Ali had lost his license to box seven years before the Rumble in the Jungle event in 1967. He did not have his license to box for almost three and a half years. This was because he refused to be recruited into the United States Armey and did not want to be deployed overseas for any mission of the US military. 

Three years later, in 1970, when he regained his license back, he was eligible to participate in additional tournaments, and he made multiple attempts to win a world-recognized title and prove himself again in the ring. However, in his fights with Jerry Quarry and Oscar Bonavena, he could not win, which kept on fueling his thirst to be number one.

On the contrary, George Foreman had already bagged the world championship title in Olympics 1968. He was well known for his strong and sturdy athletic built and powerful punches. In addition, he was ranked at number one for his heavy weight lifting. By the time he was going to face Muhammad Ali in the 'Rumble in the Jungle' event, he had been undefeated by any of his contemporaries. He was an obvious favorite for the masses against Muhammad Ali in the upcoming event.

Since the event was to be held in the present-day Republic of Congo, the athletes and their coaches were well aware that the hot climate of Africa would prove to be one of the biggest challenges for both the contestants. It added to the pressure and tension in the ring and made the already tough competition even harder. Therefore, during the year 1974, the time around the event was spent by both Muhammad Ali and George Foreman in the country of Zaire to make their bodies and temperament adjust to the climate in Africa and make the transition around the tournament easier.

The much-anticipated match also had several events before the fight. These festivities aimed to hype up the main event and maximized the eyeballs on the main combat. This turned out to play in favor of the producers and stakeholders of the fight and managed to engage massive numbers of spectators and audiences both live and on television. In addition, a music festival was held for three days, and it featured some of the top performers of that time. The referee for the fight was Zack Clayton.

The original fight was to be held on 24th September. However, George Foreman had a cut on his face before the combat, due to which the event had to be rescheduled. The fight was then held on 30th October 1974.

It was the first heavyweight championship match ever held in Africa and set a precedent for many future tournaments. A lot of the country's capital was invested into the event, and at the time, some people even argued that the financial risk taken by the government of West Africa was huge. However, the president of the country firmly believed in the idea and fully supported it. He was ambitious to use people's attention towards the country and highlight Zaire's natural beauty and untapped resources and open avenues of trade, infrastructure, and tourism. 

Later, he also admitted that through this fight, he attempted to build a bridge and flourish the relationship between the Black Americans and Africans. This was a good opportunity to do so, as Muhammad Ali had a massive fan following among many Africans, and he was seen as somewhat of a heroic figure. His firm stance against racism and challenging the discriminatory norms that existed in Western society helped him win the hearts of the Africans.

Muhammad Ali was famous for his fast pace and quick moves. He was a master at boxing techniques and an extremely skilled boxer in the ring. His opponent Foreman was known for his unmatched strength and muscular built. The fight started early morning at dawn at 4:30 am. As soon as the fight started, Foreman began with an offensive attitude and served numerous signature sledgehammer punches. He aimed to use his strength to take his opponent by a shock and force him into a defensive suit. 

However, the thirty-two-year-old Muhammad Ali had a great deal of experience in the ring. He managed to occlude most of the punches through his hand and arms. At first, Foreman seemed to be the dominant one in the fight, and it was likely that he had a clear lead in the fight. As the spectators held their breath, Muhammad Ali waited out the blows and leaned against the ring ropes. 

At first, it seemed like Foreman had succeeded in intimidating a more senior boxer, but retrospectively as analysts reviewed Ali's moves, they commended his strategy. Ali's own coach recalled his defensive move as a rope-a-dope move, and it ended up playing out in his favor.

Muhammad Ali played the game cleverly and preserved his energy and stamina till the end. He was not looking for short-term admiration, claps, and standing ovations from the audience. Instead, his gaze was fixated on the end price, and he did not care about how he looked on camera. When the fifth round started, Ali's thought process became clear to the viewers. 

His opponent, George Foreman, was exhausted after throwing powerful but missed punches, and his deliveries had not affected Ali as much as he had anticipated they would.  By that time, even his deliveries were not as impactful and seemed rather amateur. This was exactly the opportunity that Muhammad Ali had been waiting for. He emerged himself from the ropes and served a few powerful punches that hit Foreman enough to make his legs weary, and he collapsed in the ring. The fight ended after the eighth round. By this time, Foreman's offense and defense were equally weak and ineffective, and Muhammad Ali led on all three scorecards.

The fight was iconic, not just because of its grandeur, hype, and anticipation, but analysts dissected the game in its entirety, and Ali's performance proved to be a roadmap for a successful boxing game. It showed that he was an athlete who kept his cool and had a clear plan in mind before stepping into the game. He was not intimidated by his opponent, and every step that he took steered the fight in the direction he wanted it to go. It showed that he was an extremely tactful fighter. Prior to this fight, he was known for his powerful blows, but he changed his fighting style in a way that made this victory inevitable for him. Many young aspiring boxers adopted his signature rope-a-dope strategy.

This fight was a defining moment in the career of both worlds’ recognized boxers. Surprisingly these two became good friends after this event. A documentary was later made on this event in Zaire, called ‘When we were Kings’. Both of them were present at the Oscars when the documentary won an award at the academy.