TODAY is the 50th anniversary of the Rumble in the Jungle, when Muhammad Ali confirmed his immortality by knocking out George Foreman to regain the world heavyweight championship.
That fabulous, mind-blowing fight that took place before an African dawn broke over Kinshasa has been described as the greatest sporting event of the 20th Century.
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It has been 50 years since the epic Rumble in the Jungle between Muhammad Ali and George ForemanCredit: Alamy
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Colin Hart is the last British reporter alive who was at the historic fightCredit: News Group Newspapers Ltd
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SunSport’s man was ringside as Ali regained his heavyweight crownCredit: News Group Newspapers Ltd
Sadly, I’m the only British journalist who was at ringside that night who is still alive to tell the tale of what occurred before, during and after that epic battle where heroic Ali plotted his greatest triumph and Foreman met his Waterloo.
It may have happened half a century ago but it’s a fair bet if you should mention the Rumble in the Jungle from Angola to Zanzibar, most people will know what you are talking about.
Unquestionably it is the most written and talked about contest ever and the saga for me actually began nine months before in Caracas, when there was a press conference on the eve of Foreman’s title defence against Ken Norton.
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It was chaired by a strange-looking and very loud American promoter, whose hair was standing straight up as if he’d been scared out of his wits at seeing a ghost. It was my first introduction to Don King.
King announced Foreman would be making his third defence against Ali in an open-air stadium in Kinshasa, Zaire — the first bell would sound at 4am and the two men would each be paid $5million.
He also explained that Zaire’s President Mobutu Sese Seko was putting up the money — the idea was to attract tourism to his country and for Ali and Foreman to return to their African roots.
I found it difficult not to laugh out loud at the absurdity of it. George took less than two rounds to dispose of Norton and, come the autumn, I was in Kinshasa about to experience the most bizarre ten days of my working life.
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Mobutu was probably the most terrifying, murderous dictator who ever ruled a nation on the African continent — and with Uganda’s Idi Amin as a rival, that is saying something.
His presence was all-pervading — giant photographs of him were on every street corner and, when the local TV station was turned on in the evening, the opening three hours were devoted to his speeches.
The Zairians were scared to death of him, with good reason. Soon after he came to power, he had the Prime Minister and three cabinet ministers publicly hanged in front of a 50,000 crowd.
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The heartbreaking chance meeting between Muhammad Ali and Colin Hart where boxing legend revealed ‘I’m not scared to die’
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Ali and Foreman’s fight is the most analysed in historyCredit: AP:Associated Press
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Ali showed he was still the top dog in the ringCredit: AP:Associated Press
When we were given a tour of the 20th of May Stadium where the fight took place, we came across a wall pock-marked by dozens of holes.
We asked Tishimpupu Wa Tishimpupu, the Minister of Publicity, how the holes came to be there and he told us matter-of-factly that was where Mobutu had dissidents and coup plotters executed by firing squad.
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To say communications between Kinshasa and London were difficult is an under-statement. Nobody could get telephone calls to their offices and, during the build-up to the fight, stories had to be sent by telex.
The problem was many telex-operators used to disappear to have a sleep. The foreign press complained to Tishimpupu, who sent our displeasure on to Mobutu himself.
The President’s unequivocal edict to the workers was “the next telex operator who is found asleep when he should be on duty will be shot”.
They knew he meant it and it had the required effect. From that moment, they were beavering away non-stop.
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Frustratingly, the trouble was many messages ended up at the wrong address. The Times correspondent, Neil Allen, sent a 2,000-word fight preview which was somehow found spewing out of a machine in a Cambridgeshire woodyard’s office.
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There were many incredible moments from the bout
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Foreman and Ali went on to become palsCredit: AP:Associated Press
Such was the magnitude of the Ali-Foreman clash around the globe, three of America’s literary giants — Norman Mailer, Budd Schulberg and George Plimpton — were there to cover it for various high-class publications in the States.
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They were all extremely famous award-winning authors but just as enthusiastic fight fans as the regulars at York Hall — drinking with them most evenings in the casino bar and talking boxing was another unforgettable experience.
There couldn’t have been a greater contrast between Ali and Foreman — Beauty and the Beast perhaps sums them up best.
Ali, being his usual garrulous self, was adored wherever he went from the moment he set foot in Zaire. He was worshipped by the entire population.
His training camp was at N’Sele, 30 miles from Kinshasa, and thousands of men, women and children would come out of the bush to line the road and wait for hours just to get a glimpse of him as he was driven to the capital.
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Foreman at 25 wasn’t the smiling carefree giant who resembles a benign Buddha that we see today. He was surly, extremely bad tempered and far from lovable.
Having won 37 of his 40 fights by knockout — his fists were like two wrecking balls and menace seemed to ooze from every pore — he made Sonny Liston look like a soft, cuddly teddy bear.
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New ways of looking at the fight keep coming to lightCredit: AP:Associated Press
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In another 50 years it will still be analysed by boxing expertsCredit: AP
Ali at 32 was far from the first flush of youth. Hardened veterans who had been connected to boxing all their lives were among many who genuinely feared for his health and safety.
It was even seriously suggested The Greatest was likely to be bludgeoned into A&E or even worse by the time Foreman had finished his demolition job on him.
As they made the long walk from the dressing room to the ring the exotic setting was perfect for Ali, with throbbing tribal drums and 60,000 frenzied fans chanting “Ali, Boma ye” — Ali, kill him.
Having been close to the action and seen the film of the fight many times since, I still shake my head in disbelief that Ali allowed one of the most powerful men who ever laced on the gloves to punch himself out on his body.
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Tactics that appeared suicidal and had his trainer Angelo Dundee going mental.
Medals are usually handed out on battlefields for that kind of calculated bravery.
The end came for the utterly exhausted and demoralised Foreman in the eighth round, when a five-punch combination sent him spinning to the canvas to be counted out.
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Hart reckons it was the most bizarre fight of his careerCredit: Heritage Auctions
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Our man brought you all the news on the event in 1974Credit: News Group Newspapers Ltd
Ali had defied logic by winning back the crown he first held ten years before. I had a gut-feeling Big George lacked stamina, which is why in SunSport I picked Ali to beat him in nine rounds.
My Fleet Street colleagues, who to a man had gone for Foreman, thought I’d taken leave of my senses.
As Foreman, bewildered and broken, was being led back to his corner, I shamefully behaved unprofessionally by leaping out of my seat and punched the air.
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Like Ali, I was elated at being proved right against all the odds.
But I was quickly brought down to earth when I got a cable from my sports editor — the incomparable Frank Nicklin — which said “Why wrong round?”.
A heartbroken Foreman summed up his defeat, saying: “I felt totally empty. I hadn’t just lost the title, I’d lost what defined me as a man. I felt as if my core had evaporated.”
I know George well enough to realise he has never fully got over being humiliated by Ali, despite ending up friends with his rival.
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And I wouldn’t be surprised when the 100th anniversary of the Rumble in the Jungle comes around that boxing fans will be just as eager to find out what went on at the sport’s most surreal and historic episode.
Newcastle United target a January move for Brentford’s Bryan Mbeumo, Manchester United close in on appointing Ruben Amorim as manager, while Arsenal work on a deal for Leroy Sane.
Newcastle United are keen on signing Brentford’s Cameroon forward Bryan Mbeumo, 25, in January but the Magpies face spending restrictions. (Telegraph – subscription required), external
Manchester United hope to appoint Sporting manager Ruben Amorim in time for Sunday’s Premier League match against Chelsea at Old Trafford. (Times – subscription required), external
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However, Manchester United are locked in talks with Sporting over Amorim’s notice period, which is a number of weeks. (Mail), external
Amorim will still be in charge for Sporting’s next league fixture on Friday, before travelling to Manchester. (CNN Portugal), external
The Portuguese manager, 39, wants to sign Sporting’s Portugal centre-back Goncalo Inacio, 23, English winger Marcus Edwards, 25, and Portuguese forward Pedro Goncalves, 26, once he is at Manchester United. (Teamtalk), external
United’s interim boss Ruud van Nistelrooy expects to leave the club when Amorim is appointed. (Independent), external
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Manchester City remain hopeful that Pep Guardiola will extend his stay as manager, and the club are adamant they had not lined up Amorim as a potential replacement. (Mail), external
Whoever succeeds Erik ten Hag as Manchester United manager will have a limited budget to strengthen the squad in January. (Guardian), external
Arsenal are working on a deal to sign Germany winger Leroy Sane, 28, when his Bayern Munich contract expires next summer. (Football Insider), external
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Sporting are willing to sell Viktor Gyokeres for between £50m and £58m next summer, with ManchesterCity, Arsenal, Liverpool and Chelsea interested in the 26-year-old Sweden striker. (Florian Plettenberg), external
Manchester United will cut their losses on £86m Brazil winger Antony, 24, following Erik ten Hag’s sacking. (Talksport), external
Tottenham manager Ange Postecoglou is leaning towards offloading German forward Timo Werner, 28, at the end of the season. (GiveMeSport), external
“We talked a little bit about the game we played there and about living in Aberdeen and how his time was here.”
Ferguson won a raft of major trophies – including the 1983 European Cup-Winners’ Cup – during a glittering eight years in charge at Aberdeen.
He left Pittodrie in 1986, going on to amass plenty more silverware at home and abroad with Manchester United, whom he managed for 27 years.
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However, the 82-year-old recently lost his ambassador role at Old Trafford.
“We only talked about football generally,” Thelin said as he prepared for Wednesday’s high-profile visit by third-top Rangers, for whom Ferguson was a striker.
Describing the Scot as “the top man” for what he did for Aberdeen, Thelin said they chatted about “how he can reinvent himself so many times” as a manager over the years.
“We talked about how it was to live here and he wished me luck,” he added. “I was really young when he was here and he went to United.
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“It was more not about the tactical things, more about leadership, how you can for such a long time at two clubs be inspirational to new players and try to keep going.
“That is the thing you try to do yourself when you are a coach is to be consistent.”
RUBEN AMORIM would have preferred to leave Lisbon in a blaze of glory after winning a third Primeira Liga title.
Yet football does not work like that. And in what was surely his final game before taking charge of Manchester United, Amorim prepared to say his goodbyes at a half-empty Estadio Jose Alvalade in a League Cup quarter-final against Nacional.
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Sporting Lisbon fans are split as manager Ruben Amorim looks set to join Manchester UnitedCredit: Rex
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Amorim received muted applause from Sporting fans as he appears Man Utd-boundCredit: Getty
Sporting won 3-1 thanks to second-half goals by captain Morten Hjulmand and Viktor Gyokeres, who scored two.
Luis Esteves pulled one back for Madeira-based Nacional.
At the end of the match, Amorim headed down the tunnel without acknowledging the home fans.
Amorim said on the Man Utd link: “Nothing to say yet, no announcement to make. Now I have nothing to say, we are here carrying out analysis.
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“Everything I say will only create more noise. There is nothing to say about the matter. There is the statement, everyone knows. It was said by the club.
“Besides, we don’t know the details for sure. We’ll see. It will go through my decision as the statement said. But saying half things now doesn’t seem best to me.”
The stadium will be a good deal more lively on Tuesday when Manchester City are here for a Champions League match — although Amorim should by then have his feet firmly under his desk at Old Trafford.
Liverpool and Aston Villa were both interested in Europe’s most sought-after coach. Even City could have been a possible destination post-Pep Guardiola.
Yet the United job is one Amorim, 39, could not turn down — even if not everyone saw it that way at Sporting.
There is clearly a huge split in the Portuguese club’s fan base over their coach leaving at this stage of the season with many believing he should have seen the job through.
Watch Sporting Lisbon fan reveal how you’ve been pronouncing incoming Man Utd manger Ruben Amorim’s name all wrong
Yet Amorim, along with the three-man coaching team who are expected to follow him, leaves a club in a much better state than when he arrived here in 2020.
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Inside the stadium, there was applause — albeit muted — when his name was read out before the game along with the line-ups.
And there did not appear to be any jeers when Amorim shuffled out from the tunnel awkwardly towards the dugout.
So, while his departure is hard to take for some, none of the fans will forget his legacy.
This is a club which is back as the dominant force in Portugal. Even this term, Sporting have won their first nine league games, scoring 30 goals and conceding just two.
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Amorim’s Sporting legacy
They are also eighth in the Champions League table, which is one hell of an effort.
In contrast, Lisbon was not exactly hit by League Cup fever. Amorim made lots of changes, which saw Sporting’s star man Gyokeres, the former Coventry striker, start on the bench.
There was, however, a first appearance in six weeks for former Tottenham winger Marcus Edwards. He is certainly one player who has been transformed by Amorim since arriving at the club from Vitoria in 2022 and will be sorry to see the coach leave.
While he changed his team, Amorim stuck with his tried and trusted formation of a back three.
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It will certainly be something United fans will have to get used to over the coming months.
But looking at the Premier League table, none of them will be complaining about the change.
There was some big cross-promotional trash talk this past week.
PFL’s Donn Davis had some bold claims following their pay-er-view event PFL: Battle of the Giants, and those comments rubbed UFC CEO Dana White the wrong way. And as expected, White fired back at Davis while also taking a shot at former UFC heavyweight champion Francis Ngannou, who left the promotion after fighting out his UFC contract in 2022 to fight under the PFL banner.
Were Davis’ comments uncalled-for? Should he continue to agitate and fire shots at White and the UFC? Will White come to terms with Ngannou and his departure from the promotion?
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MMA Junkie’s Brian “Goze” Garcia, Dan Tom, Danny Segura, and host “Gorgeous” George discuss the latest headlines in the White vs. Ngannou and PFL beef.
Watch their discussion in the video above, and don’t miss this week’s complete episode of “Spinning Back Clique” below on YouTube.
Be sure to visit the MMA Junkie Instagram page and YouTube channel to discuss this and more content with fans of mixed martial arts.
Sporting boss Ruben Amorim says he has not yet made a decision about his future after Manchester United expressed an interest in appointing him manager.
Sporting confirmed earlier on Tuesday that United had made an approach and are willing to pay Amorim’s 10m euros (£8.3m) release clause.
Speaking after his side’s 3-1 Portuguese League Cup quarter-final win against Nacional on Tuesday evening, Amorim told Sport TV:, external “Nothing is decided yet. I don’t know if it’s the farewell game or not.”
Then in a news conference he added: “There is interest from Manchester United, there is the payment of a contract term and when I have something more solid, I will come here and tell my position, because it will be my choice.
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“While I don’t have everything decided, for one side or the other, I can’t tell much more”.
Amorim added that he will be at training on Wednesday to prepare for Friday’s league game against Estrela da Amadora.
Asked if he will be in the dugout at Old Trafford for Manchester United’s game against Chelsea on Sunday, Amorim said: “I will be here.” But when pressed added: “I don’t know.”
Manchester City boss Pep Guardiola says United would be getting a high-level coach in Amorim.
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“All I can talk about is the experience of playing twice against Ruben’s Sporting Lisbon team, one or two seasons ago, and the pressure was really, really good,” the Spaniard told a news conference.
“And look this season, he is unbeaten and winning all the games in the Portuguese League and the Champions League, [they have] the same points as us. So a high manager.
“What’s going to happen I don’t know, because what happened here in my experience, doesn’t mean it works for the other ones. The manager, the team, the club, the structures, the physios, the doctors, the players, it’s many things”.
James Llontop will step in and face Mauricio Ruffy at UFC 309 on Nov. 16, MMA Fighting has confirmed following a report by Te La Canté MMA. The pay-per-view show will take place at Madison Square Garden in New York.
Llontop replaces Charlie Campbell, who withdrew from the card six days ago due to undisclosed reasons.
Ruffy (10-1) made waves in the lightweight division by knocking out Jamie Mullarkey in spectacular fashion in his octagon debut back in May, pocketing a performance bonus for his effort at UFC 301. The Brazilian talent joined the UFC after stopping Raimond Magomedaliev at Dana White’s Contender Series.
Llontop (14-4), a fellow DWCS alumni, has yet to win under the UFC banner. “Goku” came in a half pound overweight for his debut, tapping to a rear-naked choke versus Chris Padilla in April, before dropping a split decision to Viacheslav Borshchev four months later.
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