RIP Joe Frazier

The left hook is boxing's best punch, and no one had a better one than Frazier.

 

Nice piece by Richard Hoffer on si.com: http://sportsillustrated.cnn.com/2011/writers/richard_hoffer/11/06/joe.frazier/index.html?eref=sihp&sct=hp_t11_a2

And, because everyone should read this at least once, Mark Kram's story on the Thrilla in Manila for SI (the last few paragraphs of which are, on this day, a nice tribute to Frazier): http://sportsillustrated.cnn.com/vault/article/magazine/MAG1090341/index.htm

 

Fighting Frazier (for everyone but George Foreman, at least) must've been like standing in front of a tank with a .22. You could sit there and pepper him, and he just kept coming until he clobbered you. Just relentless. That was part of what made the Ali fights so great. Ali painted him all night long, and Frazier just took it and kept plowing ahead.
RIP to a bad, bad mofo.

 

Safe to say Frazier is on heavyweight boxing's Mount Rushmore, along with Ali, Joe Louis and Rocky Marciano?

 

"one of the immortals of pugilism, a champion in and out of the ring, Philadelphia's own Smokin' Joe, the beloved Mr. Joe Frazier." #rip

 

Sportscenter: 'No comment yet from Muhammad Ali.' Seriously? They're waiting for a statement??

 

I was a little kid when he fought, and I don't have many memories of him in his prime, except for watching him on Youtube. One incredible fighter. RIP.

 

He issued a statement yesterday I thought was respectful and perfectly appropriate.

I have read from various sources we have probably heard the last of Muhammad Ali issuing actual verbal statements on anything. Although I suppose you never know.

As far as Joe Frazier is concerned, he was a fighter in every sense of the word.

 

He was also in one of my favorite Miller Lite ads:

 

Hell, Frazier himself outlived the sport by several years.

 

Interesting question, but no. Dempsey, at the very least, must be there before Frazier.

 

How could Frazier be on it and not Foreman? Jack Dempsey and Jack Johnson and Larry Holmes also are probably above him, or at least on the same level as him. Let's not go crazy, folks. Guy died. That doesn't make him any better a boxer. He was one of the 10 greatest heavyweight boxers. Not one of the four. There's no reason to exaggerate