Muhammad Ali vs. Richard Dunn was a professional boxing match contested on 24 May 1976, for the undisputed heavyweight championship.[1] This fight would mark Ali’s 37th and final knockout win of his career.
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| Date | 24 May 1976 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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| Venue | Olympiahalle, Munich, Germany | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Title(s) on the line | WBA, WBC and The Ring undisputed heavyweight championship | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Tale of the tape | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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| Result | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Ali wins via 5th-round TKO | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Background
editIn the build up to fight, Dunn appeared on the popular ITV program This Is Your Life in which Ali appeared via video message to taunt Dunn, saying "So you've taken 67 parachute drops, well, I want you to mark this down now: you have one more big drop to come, a big hard drop, it's going to be the longest sharp drop you've ever had."[2][3][4][5][6]
The fight
editDunn would start the fight on the front foot chasing Ali who would land a number of overhand rights early. A pair of lefts from Dunn landed in third however Ali scored knockdown with a right later in round. Dunn would taste the canvas twice more in fourth and once early in fifth before a windmilling right from Ali sent Dunn down for the fifth and final time prompting referee Herbert Tomser to wave the contest off.[7]
The fight is remembered for being the last time Ali would knock down any opponent in the ring in his boxing career.[8] The punch Ali used to knockout Dunn was taught to Ali by Taekwondo Grandmaster Jhoon Rhee. Rhee called that punch the "Accupunch", which he learnt from Bruce Lee. Rhee was Ali's head coach for this Dunn fight.[9]
Aftermath
editAli would praise Dunn, telling NBC broadcast: “He is better than I thought and I predict you will hear more from Richard Dunn.”
Tens of thousands of people would line the streets of Bradford to praise Dunn’s gutsy performance and welcome him home.
Undercard
editConfirmed bouts:[10]
| Winner | Loser | Weight division/title belt(s) disputed | Result |
|---|---|---|---|
 Peter Wulf
|
Peter Scheibner
|
German Super Welter | Unanimous decision. |
 Duane Bobick
|
 Bunny Johnson
|
Heavyweight (10 rounds) | 2nd-round TKO. |
 Alan Minter
|
Frank Reiche
|
Middleweight (10 rounds) | 8th-round TKO. |
 Ngozika Ekwelum
|
Tony Moore
|
Heavyweight (8 rounds) | Unanimous decision. |
| Rodney Bobick
|
Hartmut Sasse
|
Heavyweight (8 rounds) | 3rd-round KO. |
| Horst Lang
|
Arno Prick
|
Heavyweight (6 rounds) | Draw. |
Broadcasting
edit| Country | Broadcaster |
|---|---|
 Australia |
Nine Network |
 Brazil |
Band |
 Canada |
CTV |
 France |
TF1 |
| Germany |
ARD |
 Japan |
TBS |
 Mexico |
Televisa |
 Philippines |
RPN 9 |
 Spain |
TVE |
| United Kingdom |
ITV[11] |
| United States |
NBC |
References
edit- ^ "Muhammad Ali vs. Richard Dunn". boxrec.com. BoxRec. Retrieved 3 June 2024.
- ^ "Bradford's Richard Dunn recalls the night he took on Muhammad Ali and pays tribute to his 'charisma and style'". Telegraph & Argus. 5 June 2016. Retrieved 5 October 2016.
- ^ "Muhammad Ali beating me was the highlight of my life, says Richard Dunn". The Telegraph. 5 June 2016. Retrieved 5 October 2016.
- ^ "Dunn's memories of legends Ali and Frazier". The Scarborough News. 22 December 2011. Retrieved 5 October 2016.
- ^ Felix Dennis; Don Atyeo (2003). Muhammad Ali: The Glory Years. miramax books. pp. 246–50.
- ^ Thomas Hauser (1991). Muhammad Ali:His Life and Times. Simon & Schuster. pp. 323–6.
- ^ Rowan Newman (21 June 2020). "Bradford's Richard Dunn convincingly beaten by Muhammad Ali". thetelegraphandargus.co.uk. Telegraph & Argus. Retrieved 3 June 2024.
- ^ "Muhammad Ali's ring record". ESPN. 19 November 2003. Retrieved 5 October 2016.
- ^ "Jhoon Rhee, Father of American Tae Kwon Do". www.jhoonrhee.com. Retrieved 2019-05-01.
- ^ "BoxRec - event".
- ^ "TV Times May 20 1976 Original Vintage Magazine Muhammad Ali v Richard Dunn". etsy.com. Etsy. Retrieved 3 June 2024.