Ali’s most bizarre bout
QUESTION Did Muhammad Ali take part in a wrestling bout?
MUHAMMAD ali claimed: ‘i’ve wrestled with alligators, i’ve tussled with a whale. i done handcuffed lightning. and throw thunder in jail. You know i’m bad.’
What he didn’t mention is that he also took on Japanese wrestler antonio inoki, and it was all a bit embarrassing.
The bout came about after ali met ichiro Yada, president of the Japanese amateur Wrestling association, in 1975. ali taunted Yada: ‘isn’t there any Oriental fighter who will challenge me? i’ll give him $1 million if he wins.’
inoki, a seasoned pro wrestler with a body toughened by years of working in the coffee fields of Brazil, got wind of the challenge. he threw down the gauntlet to ali in a letter, claiming: ‘if i have a chance to fight with you, i could make you sleep on the canvas within ten minutes.’
as a sweetener, he offered ali $6 million. ali worked the media in characteristic style. ‘You are bad in Japan, but Japan shall meet the ghettos!’ he shouted at inoki during a Press lunch. ‘i’m gonna show you how we do it in the ghettos... how the coloured folks do it!’
ali was under the impression the fight would be choreographed, as was the case in u.S. pro wrestling, but inoki was preparing for a real fight.
however, the wrestler agreed, or was coerced, into modifying his fighting style. he was not allowed to kick while standing, but had to have one knee on the mat or be on his back.
it was a bizarre spectacle when the pair met on June 26, 1976, at a packed Budokan stadium in Tokyo. To compete under the restrictions, inoki spent most of the 15 rounds on his back while ali danced around the ring.
The unimpressed crowd threw rubbish into the ring and chanted: ‘Money back! Money back!’
despite inoki causing the boxer all sorts of problems, the fight was declared a draw. inoki had been three points up, but was docked all three for fouls. This meant no one had to lose face: inoki could claim he would have won had it not been for the penalties while ali could say his opponent had cheated.
however, the bout caused lasting physical damage to both combatants. inoki broke his foot while ali damaged his left leg, developing two blood clots that would affect the rest of his career.
in 1977, ali invited inoki to his wedding and the two became good friends.
inoki continued to wrestle for the next 22 years. in 1989, he established the Sports and Peace Party and was elected to the upper house of the Japanese parliament. in 1990, he successfully negotiated with Saddam hussein to release Japanese hostages in iraq. he retired from politics in 2019.
Richard Dutton, London E7.
QUESTION At what temperature would a cup of boiling water freeze immediately if thrown into the air?
YOU may have seen pictures or videos of people throwing boiling water into the air with spectacular snowy results.
To achieve this feat, the temperature needs to be minus 32c. The coldest ever recorded in Britain is minus 27.2c.
Boiling water is close to vaporisation, the transition between a liquid and gas. it has low viscosity, so when you throw it into the air, it breaks into droplets.
due to the high ratio of surface area to volume, these droplets freeze into tiny ice crystals that resemble snow.
Cold water does not vaporise, so at extreme temperatures it’s more likely to freeze into icy shards.
a much safer way to make snow is to use a pressure washer. Set to a fine mist, it can produce snow at 0c, which is how snow machines work.
Will Murray, Inverness.
QUESTION Was the driver of the car in which Eddie Cochran met his death charged with a road traffic offence?
AMERICAN rock ’n’ roll singer/songwriter eddie Cochran was killed in a car accident hours after completing a 1960 UK tour. he was just 21.
The driver was fined and banned for dangerous driving.
On January 24, 1960, eddie had joined fellow american rocker, Gene Vincent, plus supporting British acts on a sell-out nationwide tour. Their final performance was on april 16 at the Bristol hippodrome. Frazzled by their exertions, the americans were anxious to get home.
With theatrical agent Patrick Tompkins and eddie’s fiancée, songwriter Sharon Sheeley, they booked a taxi to take them to london airport, now heathrow.
Soon after midnight on the a4 in Chippenham, Wiltshire, the Ford Consul spun out of control, smashing into a concrete lamp post.
A report by Wiltshire Constabulary noted a 50-yard skid mark and estimated the speed at 60 mph.
The taxi driver, George William Thomas Martin, and Tompkins were unscathed, while Sheeley and Vincent recovered from their serious injuries. eddie died the next day, easter Sunday, at St Martin’s hospital, Bath, of cerebral contusions and haemorrhaging.
Martin went on trial at Bristol assizes and was found guilty of dangerous driving. The judge, noting he was ‘a young lad, not yet 21’, fined him £50 with six months’ imprisonment upon default of payment. his driving licence was suspended for 15 years.
That June, eddie topped the charts posthumously in the UK with the poignantly titled Three Steps To heaven.
He left an enduring musical legacy. his raw, bass-driven style on hits such as C’mon everybody and Somethin’ else was a heavy influence on punk rock. So much so that The Sex Pistols took both songs into the Top Ten.
David Morgan, Laleham, Surrey.
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