THRILLA IN MANILA GOLDEN ANNIVERSARY 19: JOE FRAZIER FIGHTS ALI, QUARRY AND ELLIS AGAIN
By Maloney L. Samaco
PhilBoxing.com
Mon, 13 Oct 2025
Joe Frazier's second match against Muhammad Ali was fought on January 28, 1974 at Madison Square Garden in New York City. Unlike their first encounter, the bout was a non-title fight, and this time Ali won a 12-round unanimous decision. Ali won a close but unanimous decision, referee Tony Perez scored it 6–5–1, judge Tony Castellano had it 7–4–1, and judge Jack Gordon saw it 8–4–0.
The fighting was rough, and the action was spoiled by Ali making 133 clinches, several of these by holding Frazier's head and pushing down on his neck, which referee Tony Perez did not declare as a violation under the rules.
After the fight Tony Perez, was interviewed about Ali's violations, and replied that the only violation is if you hold and hit at the same time, although Ali was holding Frazier but he was not hitting his opponent. Several rounds were close and the judges had difficulty scoring and punch volume unleashed by the two fighters was unusually low for the two fighters.
Five months later on June 17, 1974, Frazier again battled Jerry Quarry in Madison Square Garden by winning the fight in the fifth round with a strong left hook to the ribs. Several fans observed that both fighters were slower than their first encounter but still enjoyed the match.
In March 1975, Frazier fought a rematch with Jimmy Ellis in Melbourne, Australia. Ellis outpointed Frazier in the first three rounds. In the fourth round Frazier started to connect with his vaunted left hooks even released right hooks and jabs that surprised Ellis. Ellis was cut in his right eye by a Frazier hook and the referee had to stop the fight in the ninth round.
The impressive win over Ellis again established Frazier as the top heavyweight challenger for the title, which Ali had won from Foreman in the famous "Rumble in the Jungle" five months earlier in Zaire, Africa.
At stake was a chance for Ali to avenge his loss to Frazier in their first fight, and establish a shot for the world title against then heavyweight champion George Foreman, who had earlier dethroned Frazier.
Because it was not a world title fight, some fans and experts considered it to be the least interesting and hyped of their three fights, but it provided flashes of excellence by both fighters, and was described by the Associated Press as "...another great match between two different types of fighters, the slugger versus the master craftsman".
The fight was highly anticipated at the time, but absent was the unequivocal spectacle of the first bout. However, it evened up the score at one win apiece, and it fueled the journey to the historic trilogy between the two heavyweight champions a year later in Manila, once again for the world championship after Ali's magnificent demolition of Foreman.
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