Sept. 10, 1973: Ali vs Norton II

Norton-Ali2-poster

It had been years since Muhammad Ali worked with such intensity and purpose, years since he had forced his body to undergo the torture necessary to reach supreme physical condition. It was 1973 and the former heavyweight champion’s entire career, not to mention his prospects for ever regaining the world title, was at stake.

At his rugged training camp in Deer Lake, Pennsylvania, Ali sought to whip his once Adonis-like physique back into top shape, determined as he was to make amends for what happened the previous March in San Diego, California. There, Ali’s career, up to this point a luminous monument to his extraordinary talent despite his loss to Joe Frazier, had suffered a huge setback. There he had sustained both a second defeat, this time to little-known contender Ken Norton, and a broken jaw. So shocking and disheartening was this setback that some speculated “The Greatest’s” long run at the top of the heavyweight division, a run interrupted only by his forced exile for refusing to join the war effort in Vietnam, may have come to an inglorious end.

ali-norton2-weigh-in

But the former champion’s jaw had healed, and if Ali’s ego had yet to fully recover from the drubbing endured at the hands of the unheralded prospect with the body-builder physique, his determination and competitive spirit certainly had. He demanded an immediate rematch and then eschewed the groupies and adoring crowds, the fawning interviewers and star-struck admirers, and instead spent hour after lonely hour running on the trails at Deer Lake. He surrendered himself to the painful ministrations of the silent Cuban, Luis Sarria, the man who put Ali through his agonizing routines on the rub-down table. He ran and sparred and chopped wood and ran some more and when Angelo Dundee pulled the satin robe from Ali’s shoulders in the ring on that September night at the Inglewood Forum, the crowd saw a sleek and confident Ali, ten pounds lighter than in San Diego, an Ali primed to avenge himself.

But two obstacles threatened the former champion’s quest for redemption. One was Ken Norton himself, a boxer of talent and toughness who knew he had whipped Ali once and was confident he could do it again. The other opposing force was one we all confront: Father Time. For while Ali had paid the price in training camp, no fitness regimen could resurrect the reflexes, speed and stamina of his younger self. Sharp he was against Norton on this night, but not as sharp as he had been in 1967, while the ex-Marine, with his size, strength and underrated power, deserved to be regarded as one of the most daunting challenges Ali had ever faced.

Despite this, the early rounds testified to the former champion’s renewed dedication to serious training. Dancing swiftly as he snapped out a continuous volley of left jabs, Ali never stopped moving on those nimble feet. Norton doggedly pursued but was hard-pressed to even get into punching range, and when he did, Ali immediately stifled his attack with a vise-grip clinch. The first three rounds belonged to “The Louisville Lip,” and after each he refused to sit on his stool while being ministered to by Angelo Dundee and Bundini Brown. Then, ten or fifteen seconds early, he would turn from his corner and skip lightly to ring center, seemingly impatient for the bout to resume, dancing and shuffling in place, as if to say to Norton, “See? Look at these strong legs and quick feet. I can dance all night. This time, I’m ready!”

And yet there was a fly in the ointment, a flaw in Ali’s fight thus far. For while he was dancing and controlling matters and winning rounds, his punches were not connecting with force, at least not enough to earn the respect of Norton, who kept boring in, showing no fear of Ali’s power. The time when “The Greatest” possessed the coordination to score powerful blows while simultaneously gliding over the surface of the canvas like Gretzky on ice was in the past. Perhaps signaling the realization that this was going to be a more difficult ordeal than he had hoped, after round four, Ali sat down.

Ali vs Norton

And, as if on cue, Norton came on in the fifth, cutting off the ring and finding the range for his own left jab, a jab not as quick as Ali’s but every bit as hard, maybe harder. He pounded Ali’s body with both hands, struck with two left hooks near the end of the round and at the bell shouted, “I own you!” as the former champion trudged back to his corner. Ali’s face bore a weary look. Instead of a glorious return to domination it was going to be a firefight, and a grueling one at that.

The fans at the Inglewood Forum and on closed-circuit television were already enjoying a very lively heavyweight bout, but round six saw the pace pick up even more as Norton closed the distance. Both men landed telling shots, Norton with the jab and left hook and Ali with a series of rights, and the intense action, reflecting a pace more appropriate for middleweights than heavyweights, had the crowd on its feet, roaring.

Ali vs Norton

And there was no let-up as the match entered its second half, though Ali clearly wanted one. Circling the ring again and working to keep Norton at the end of his punches, he attempted to return to the more civil proceedings of the opening rounds, but his adversary would not cooperate. Now clearly out-jabbing Ali and seemingly growing stronger, Norton trapped his quarry in the corner and stunned him with a thudding uppercut. Opening up with both hands, he drove heavy shots to Ali’s body, then a right upstairs, a left hook, and another uppercut and Muhammad, clearly hurt for the first time, held on. The battle drifted back to ring center where the proud former champion scored with a series of sharp one-two’s, but Norton pressed and then struck with the heaviest blow of the entire fight, a thunderous right to the jaw that must have caused Ali to wonder if his once-fractured mandible might give way again. For the first time it appeared a shocking repeat win for Norton was more than a distinct possibility.

Astonishingly, Ali appeared undiminished in the eighth and he boxed with authority until the final minute when Norton stunned him with a perfectly timed counter left hook. The final minute of round nine saw the heavyweights battle toe-to-toe, neither warrior having a decided edge. Both rounds were close and so was the tenth as Ali out-boxed his nemesis for its majority but it was Norton connecting with the damaging blows near the end, including a left hook that violently snapped back Ali’s head. Then came the eleventh, Norton’s best round of the match. Clearly stronger now, he bulled his quarry into the ropes, viciously pounding Ali’s belly with both hands.

And so, as the bell rang to start the final round, there was the sense the decision could go either way. Ali vs Norton II would be decided by its final three minutes and here the extra roadwork the former champion did in Deer Lake paid huge dividends. For it was Ali who emerged from his corner with his fists churning, blasting Norton with a series of whip-like combinations, his right hand connecting flush and forcing Norton to take his first involuntary backward steps in the entire fight. And incredibly, after eleven torrid rounds, Ali was up on his toes again, dancing and striking with clean jabs and follow-up rights. And even after absorbing four heavy left hooks, it was Ali who dazed Norton with a right and a pair of uppercuts before throwing a flurry at the bell. The last round was Ali’s and with it, the fight.

But by a veritable whisker. The final decision was split, one judge scoring for Norton, the other two for Ali. An unofficial poll of ringside journalists saw eight votes for Ali and six for Norton while several others scored it a draw. There was precious little separating the two men and even after the decision was announced and Ali’s hand was raised, the former champion appeared not at all satisfied. He accepted the congratulations of his admirers but made no effort to hide his disappointment. He had been taken to the brink and now knew that no matter how hard he pushed himself in training, the supreme edge of his game, that unique blend of elusiveness, speed and sharp punching, was unlikely to ever return.

Surrounded by his handlers and praised for his win and for being in tremendous condition, Ali gave a rueful smile. “I’m in good condition, but I’m tireder than usual…” — and here he paused as if reluctant to admit a hard-learned lesson — “…because of my age.” He added: “If I wasn’t in this shape, no way I could’ve won.” And he went on to praise Norton as “the next best in the world after myself.” In fact, he would later say that, Joe Frazier aside, Norton was a better fighter than any he had faced before.

Such words helped ensure the narrow defeat diminished in no way Norton’s standing as a new and potent force in the division; indeed his next match was for the world title, a violent knockout loss to George Foreman in Venezuela. Ali, realizing he could no longer afford to cut corners in training, maintained his renewed commitment to conditioning in the months ahead, his new-found discipline enabling him to defeat Joe Frazier in their rematch the next year, and then, in a great upset, to regain the world title from Foreman in the legendary “Rumble in the Jungle.” But neither triumph would have been possible, not to mention Ali’s widespread status as arguably the greatest heavyweight of all-time, had he not secured victory against Ken Norton in their high stakes rematch, an intense and action-packed battle which may well be regarded as Ali’s most desperate hour.       – Michael Carbert

Become a patron at Patreon!

19 thoughts on “Sept. 10, 1973: Ali vs Norton II

    • March 1, 2018 at 1:39 am
      Permalink

      Clay lost every fight to Norton to say other wise you are lying to your self.

      Reply
      • July 8, 2018 at 10:42 pm
        Permalink

        Look in the history books and you will find otherwise.

        Reply
      • September 12, 2018 at 5:05 pm
        Permalink

        Agreed. Only the second was close, and it’s very hard for me to see Ali doing enough to deserve it. 3-0, Norton.

        Reply
      • March 15, 2019 at 9:04 am
        Permalink

        Watched the fight again recently, can’t agree with you. Ali won a close fight. It was and will always be a classic.

        Reply
      • April 21, 2023 at 10:43 am
        Permalink

        No, not lying. Ali won 2 of 3 fights.

        Reply
      • March 9, 2024 at 2:39 pm
        Permalink

        Sorry, I don’t agree.

        Reply
  • September 9, 2015 at 2:21 pm
    Permalink

    Thank you for this great article

    Reply
  • June 8, 2016 at 8:45 pm
    Permalink

    One of my favourite Ali fights. Norton was an underrated operator who did everything well, and he was as strong as a bull too. What’s more, he seemed to enjoy fighting Muhammad, even the rejuvenated version who showed up for the return. Kenny wasn’t at all intimidated like so many others. This is definitely one of Ali’s best performances considering the pressure he was under to get revenge and the technical problems Norton posed. He had to go to the well.

    Reply
    • June 8, 2016 at 9:22 pm
      Permalink

      Agree 100%, Ronnie. This is a somewhat overlooked classic. Fast-paced and bruising action for the full 12 rounds, heavyweights fighting like middleweights. One of my all-time favourite fights.

      Reply
  • June 25, 2016 at 1:26 pm
    Permalink

    Norton was such an amazing fighter. It’s too bad most don’t remember him like others of his time. All three Ali fights, his fight with Holmes. Amazing. I think I liked this fight more than the first Ali fight. The “I own you!” Is crazy, I never heard that because I normally watch boxing on mute. I love this website and these articles.

    Reply
  • September 12, 2017 at 6:45 pm
    Permalink

    Fantastic, thank you for writing such a wonderful article.

    Reply
  • February 16, 2018 at 2:44 pm
    Permalink

    I think you romanticized the fight more than necessary. By that I don’t mean it doesn’t deserve to be romanticized but that the fight was not as close as you say. Close? Yes. But I’ve watched it a few times and always thought Ali won 8 rounds to 4.

    Reply
    • November 4, 2018 at 6:37 am
      Permalink

      Good point. Too many people fall for highlight punching and forget to count. Ali won the second fight. The 3rd fight is more controversial maybe.

      Reply
    • January 22, 2020 at 12:36 pm
      Permalink

      Everybody’s expectation was Ali would knock Norton out in the last round, but Norton could knock out Ali too. But it didn’t happen. And no one could do it against Ali. Again, Ali did good in the last round against Norton at an old age. It is not easy to beat Ali, because he can skip shots and he has speedy hands.

      Reply
    • September 11, 2021 at 4:08 am
      Permalink

      My observation also. Ali won at least 8 rounds

      Reply
  • February 18, 2019 at 5:37 pm
    Permalink

    If Ali doesn’t get this decision, it’s improbable he goes after Frazier to win, then Forman, to add to his career some glorious moments. I feel sorry for Norton, who could have won for his dominating blows, but Ali was the master at hiding his lacking power toward the end by showing dancing stamina and ability to handle the punches of Norton which make Norton’s punches appear less strong that they were, even though every one of them took a toll on him. That experience helped make the fight a tough decision, and of course the edge goes to the older one for standing strong, until the end, against the young accurate strong Norton.

    Reply
  • September 11, 2019 at 9:57 pm
    Permalink

    How lucky am I ?My Grandfather (Mom’s side) took me to this fight at the Fabulous Forum,it was the last time I saw my Grandpa and the only time I saw Ali live.And yeah Michael I thought Ali pulled it out in the last round.Thanks for bringing my memories alive.

    Reply
  • July 25, 2023 at 11:15 am
    Permalink

    Very nicely written piece. Ali was much humbler at the weigh-in on Johnny Carson’s show. 😊

    Reply

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *