Cassius Clay vs. Doug Jones was a professional boxing match contested on March 13, 1963. Clay won on points in what would prove to be one of the closest fights of his early professional career. The fight was named 1963's Fight of the Year by The Ring.[1]
| Date | March 13, 1963 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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| Venue | Madison Square Garden, New York City, New York | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Tale of the tape | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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| Result | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Clay won in 10 rounds by unanimous decision | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Background
editThis was a ten-round heavyweight title elimination bout at Madison Square Garden in New York City. Clay and Jones held the second and third spots in the top ten rankings respectively. Former champion Floyd Patterson held the number one rank, and was preparing for a rematch with Sonny Liston.
Clay was given 3-1 odds of defeating Jones, and confidently predicted he would score a knockout victory in the fourth round.
The fight
editThe fight a hard-fought match, the more experienced Jones fought courageously against his larger opponent, taking everything thrown at him while countering effectively, greatly effecting Clay's timing. Neither man was knocked down, despite Clay attempting to knock his opponent out particularly in the third and fourth rounds. Upon failing to make his prediction, Clay was booed at the end of the fourth round. The final rounds picked up in speed and intensity, with Clay ultimately prevailing in a series of fierce exchanges, and went on to win the bout on points through a close but unanimous decision.[2][3][4][5][6][7]
Viewership and revenue
editThe fight was Madison Square Garden's first boxing sellout in 13 years,[8] grossing a live gate of $304,943 ($3,034,846 inflation adjusted). The fight purses were $90,000 ($895,696 inflation adjusted) for Clay and $75,000 for Jones.[9]
The fight had a closed-circuit theatre television broadcast, which drew 150,000 pay-per-view buys,[10] including 9,000 in Texas[11] and 1,500 at Syria Mosque.[12] The fight grossed $500,000 ($4,976,087 inflation adjusted) in closed-circuit television revenue. In addition, the fight also had a pay-per-view home television broadcast in Toronto and Hartford, Connecticut.[8] The fight's combined live gate and closed-circuit revenue was $804,943 ($8,010,933 inflation adjusted).
Broadcasting
edit| Country | Broadcaster |
|---|---|
 United Kingdom |
BBC |
Undercard
editConfirmed bouts:[13]
References
edit- ^ "Cassius Clay vs. Doug Jones". boxrec.com. BoxRec. Retrieved 19 March 2024.
- ^ "Muhammad Ali's ring record". ESPN. 19 November 2003. Retrieved 6 October 2016.
- ^ Thomas Hauser (1991). Muhammad Ali: His Life and Times. Simon & Schuster. pp. 51–3.
- ^ Felix Dennis & Don Atyeo (2003). Muhammad Ali: The Glory Years. miramax books. pp. 68–76.
- ^ "Muhammad Ali: The Dream". Time. 22 March 1963. Retrieved 7 October 2016.
- ^ "A Comeuppance for the Cocksure Cassius". Sports Illustrated. 25 March 1963. Retrieved 7 October 2016.
- ^ Michael Ezra (2009). Muhammad Ali:The Making of an Icon. Temple University Press. pp. 52–4.
- ^ a b "Clay-Jones Fight First Garden Sellout in 13 Yrs". Traverse City Record-Eagle. March 13, 1963.
- ^ "Narrow Win Over Jones Jars Poetry Out Of Clay". Tucson Daily Citizen. March 14, 1963.
- ^ "Invitation To Murder: Cassius May Get A Crack At Liston This Summer". The Courier-Journal. March 14, 1963.
- ^ "Cassius Clay Outpoints Doug Jones For Decision: Clay Still Wants Liston in Six Months For Title". Brownwood Bulletin. March 14, 1963.
- ^ "Fight Telecast On at Mosque (Cassius Clay Ticket Ad)". Pittsburgh Post-Gazette. March 13, 1963.
- ^ "BoxRec - event".
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