Lawdy Lawdy

After the Thrilla in Manila:

His eyes were only slits, his face looked as if it had been painted by Goya. "Man, I hit him with punches that'd bring down the walls of a city," said Frazier. "Lawdy, lawdy, he's a great champion." Then he put his head back down on the pillow, and soon there was only the heavy breathing of a deep sleep slapping like big waves against the silence.

Man, I love Muhammad Ali but this classic Sport Illustrated article made me better appreciate Joe Frazier and the magnitude of this epic rivalry. These men fought each other three times, and their final battle in The Philippines brought them both to the brink of death. Oftentimes we watch a boxing match, or any sporting event for that matter, without much thought about the post-event physical effects. This article paints an elegent picture of this bloody bout, but it also describes the sorry state of Ali and Frazier later that evening; the champ could barely chew his dinner and his opponent was rendered nearly blind.

A hat tip to my favorite contemporary sportswriter Bill Simmons for rattling off a list of his favorite sports journalism of all time in a recent column. I've been having a lot of fun tracking down and reading this stuff.