Today in History—October 1: The “Thrilla in Manila”

On this day in 1975, Muhammad Ali and Joe Frazier met for the third and final time in the boxing ring.

They first faced off in 1971, after Ali returned to professional boxing following a three-year suspension for refusing the Vietnam War draft. Frazier, who had become world champion during Ali’s absence, handed the ring-rusty Ali the first loss of his professional career. Frazier’s win raised doubts about whether Ali would ever dominate the sport again.

But Ali had a knack for beating the odds. Frazier lost his title to George Foreman in 1973. And when Ali and Frazier squared off for a second time in January 1974, it was Ali who came out on top. That win gave Ali the opportunity to challenge the seemingly unbeatable Foreman, whom he stunned in 1974 to regain the title.

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All this fueled anticipation for Ali and Frazier’s third and final match: the “Thrilla in Manila”—the name referencing the location of the match and coming directly from one of Ali’s deeply provocative, boasting rhymes (“It’ll be a killa and a thrilla and a chilla, when I get that gorilla in Manila,” Ali taunted).

An ace trash talker, Ali took potshots at Frazier’s intellect and cast him as an ally of the white establishment. Frazier was a Black sharecropper’s son who’d overcome much hardship, and the insults stung. Their long-standing rivalry turned personal. Frazier was bitter. He didn’t have Ali’s silver tongue, so he felt compelled to respond with his fists.

The fight itself became a contest of grit between two legends—both past their prime but unbroken in will. Ali dominated early, before Frazier mounted a ferocious counterattack in the middle. Ali took the reins back late, and Frazier’s face was so badly swollen by the 14th round that he could barely see. Frazier’s trainer called it off before the 15th and final round.

Ali won, but both prizefighters left a part of themselves in that ring. Neither would completely recover physically from that grueling fight.

Frazier resented Ali to the very end, though Ali expressed regret years later: “I’m sorry I hurt him. Joe Frazier is a good man. I couldn’t have done what I did without him, and he couldn’t have done what he did without me.”