Muhammad Ali vs. Antonio Inoki, billed as The War of the Worlds, was a fight between American

professional boxer Professional boxing, or prizefighting, is regulated, sanctioned boxing. Professional boxing bouts are fought for a purse that is divided between the boxers as determined by contract. Most professional fights are supervised by a regulatory auth ...

Muhammad Ali Muhammad Ali (; born Cassius Marcellus Clay Jr.; January 17, 1942 – June 3, 2016) was an American professional boxer and social activist. A global cultural icon, widely known by the nickname "The Greatest", he is often regarded as the gr ...

Antonio Inoki (born ; 20 February 1943 – 1 October 2022) was a Japanese professional wrestler, Glossary of professional wrestling terms#school, professional wrestling trainer, martial arts, martial artist, politician, and Promoter (entertainment), promot ...

, held at the

Nippon Budokan The , often shortened to simply Budokan, is an indoor arena in Chiyoda, Tokyo, Japan. It was originally built for the inaugural Olympic judo competition in the 1964 Summer Olympics. The Budokan was a popular venue for Japanese professional wres ...

arena in

Tokyo Tokyo, officially the Tokyo Metropolis, is the capital of Japan, capital and List of cities in Japan, most populous city in Japan. With a population of over 14 million in the city proper in 2023, it is List of largest cities, one of the most ...

, Japan, on June 26, 1976. At the time, Ali had come off a

knockout A knockout (abbreviated to KO or K.O.) is a fight-ending, winning criterion in several full-contact combat sports, such as boxing, kickboxing, Muay Thai, mixed martial arts, karate, some forms of taekwondo and other sports involving striking, ...

victory over Richard Dunn in May and was the undisputed heavyweight boxing champion. Inoki, who had been taught

catch wrestling Catch wrestling (also known as catch-as-catch-can) is an English wrestling style where wrestlers aim to win by Pin (sport wrestling), pinning or Submission (combat sports), submitting their opponent using any legal holds or techniques. It emph ...

by wrestler

Karl Gotch Karl Istaz (born Karel Alfons Ceclie Istaz; August 3, 1924 – July 28, 2007), best known by the ring name , was a competitor and trainer in Professional wrestling, professional, Amateur wrestling, amateur, and catch wrestling, born in Antwerp, B ...

, was staging exhibition fights against champions of various

martial arts Martial arts are codified systems and traditions of combat practiced for a number of reasons such as self-defence; military and law enforcement applications; combat sport, competition; physical, mental, and spiritual development; entertainment; ...

, in an attempt to show that pro wrestling was the dominant fighting discipline.Antonio Inoki Home Page: best matches
Asahi-net.or.jp. Retrieved on 2015-05-30. The fight itself, which was fought under special rules, is seen as a precursor to modern

mixed martial arts Mixed martial arts (MMA) is a full-contact fighting combat sport, sport based on strike (attack), striking and grappling; incorporating techniques from various combat sports from around the world. In the early 20th century, various inter-s ...

(MMA). The majority of the fight saw Inoki on his back kicking Ali's legs 107 times uninhibited by the referee (due to a particular rule negotiated shortly before the fight, which allowed him to do so without being disqualified). The result of the fight, a draw, has long been debated by the press and fans. The fight was refereed by Gene LeBell.

Background

In April 1975, at a reception held in the United States, Muhammad Ali was introduced to Ichiro Hatta, president of the Japanese Amateur Wrestling Association. Ali characteristically bragged to Hatta: "Isn't there any Oriental fighter who will challenge me? I'll give him one million dollars if he wins". This flippant remark made headlines in Japan, and Ali's challenge was accepted by Inoki, whose financial backers offered the boxer $6 million for the fight. The deal was struck in March 1976, and the fight was scheduled for June 26 at Tokyo's

.Tallent, Aaron.
The Joke That Almost Ended Ali's Career
. The Sweet Science. February 20, 2005. Retrieved June 28, 2012. Several press conferences were held to promote the fight. When the two men first met, Ali announced he would nickname Inoki "The Pelican", because of his prominent chin. Inoki replied, via an interpreter: "When your fist connects with my chin, take care that your fist is not damaged". He then presented Ali with a

crutch A crutch is a mobility aid that transfers weight from the human leg, legs to the upper body. It is often used by people who cannot use their legs to support their weight, for reasons ranging from short-term injuries to lifelong disabilities. Hi ...

, to use after he had been thrown from the ring. Inoki said afterwards: "I don't know how seriously Muhammad Ali is taking the fight, but if he doesn't take it seriously, he could suffer damage. I'm going in there fighting. I may even break his arm".Bull, Andy.
The forgotten story of ... Muhammad Ali v Antonio Inoki
. ''

The Guardian ''The Guardian'' is a British daily newspaper. It was founded in Manchester in 1821 as ''The Manchester Guardian'' and changed its name in 1959, followed by a move to London. Along with its sister paper, ''The Guardian Weekly'', ''The Guardi ...

''. November 11, 2009. Retrieved June 28, 2012. In preparation for the fight, Ali trained with a wrestler, The Sheik. Ali also sparred with wrestlers Kenny Jay and Buddy Wolff, defeating both in televised exhibition matches. The

Associated Press The Associated Press (AP) is an American not-for-profit organization, not-for-profit news agency headquartered in New York City. Founded in 1846, it operates as a cooperative, unincorporated association, and produces news reports that are dist ...

prefaced a report by its correspondent John Roderick written on the eve of the fight by describing it as "...what is called by some the world's first Martial Arts Championship — and by others a multi-million-dollar sham". Muhammad_Ali_vs

On the day of the fight Ali made a scene upon his arrival at the airport, bellowing "There will be no

Pearl Harbor Pearl Harbor is an American lagoon harbor on the island of Oahu, Hawaii, west of Honolulu. It was often visited by the naval fleet of the United States, before it was acquired from the Hawaiian Kingdom by the U.S. with the signing of the Reci ...

! Muhammad Ali has returned! There will be no Pearl Harbor!" as he walked past the mass of journalists. Anticipation for the fight was huge; it would be broadcast to 34 countries around the world to an estimated audience of 1.4 billion. Because of time zone differences, the bout was seen on June 25 at over 150 closed circuit TV locations in the US. In New York, pro-wrestling promoter Vince McMahon, Sr. sold tickets to a closed-circuit telecast of the fight at

Shea Stadium William A. Shea Municipal Stadium ( ), typically shortened to Shea Stadium, was a multi-purpose stadium in Flushing Meadows–Corona Park in Queens, New York City.Showdown at Shea, the Ali and Inoki fight would be the main event on a card that also featured wrestler

André the Giant André René Roussimoff (; 19 May 1946 – 28 January 1993), better known by his ring name André the Giant, was a French professional wrestler and actor. Dubbed "the Eighth Wonder of the World", Roussimoff was known for his great size, which ...

vs. boxer Chuck Wepner.Cohen, Eric.
Antonio Inoki vs Muhammad Ali
.

About.com Dotdash Meredith (formerly The Mining Company, About.com and Dotdash) is an American digital media company based in New York City. The company publishes online articles and videos about various subjects across categories including health, hom ...

. Retrieved June 28, 2012. The Budokan itself was sold out, with the most expensive seats costing .

Rules

The fight was contested under specially created rules. Due to varying claims over the years, it is difficult to know the reasons behind their implementation. Inoki initially responded to Ali's 'challenge' to having a bare-knuckle match in a letter to Angelo Dundee and promoter Don King in early June, 1975. On March 25, 1976, Ali and Inoki held a press conference at the Plaza Hotel in New York CIty. It included a signing ceremony to officially declare a match between the world heavyweight boxing champion and the Japanese wrestling star, the latter also a world champion of the National Wrestling Federation. Both parties agreed to a KO or submission in order to recognize the victor, with Ali wearing boxing gloves and Inoki fighting barehanded. These terms were negotiated and agreed upon by Angelo Dundee, Vince McMahon Sr., and Mike LeBell, Gene's brother and promoter. It has been alleged that Ali's handlers originally agreed to a worked match, but that Ali never agreed to fix the fight. According to boxing journalist Jim Murphy, the original plan was for Ali to accidentally punch the referee and knock him out. While standing over the referee, looking concerned, Inoki would knock him out with an enzuigiri or a

roundhouse kick A roundhouse kick (also known as round kick or turning kick) is a kick in which the practitioner lifts the knee while turning the supporting foot and body in a semicircular motion, extending the leg striking with the lower part of the shin and/ ...

to the head. The referee would then come around and count Ali out, giving Inoki the win in front of his fellow countrymen, and allowing Ali to save face. However, when Ali found out he had to lose, he refused, turning the fixed fight into a real one. According to Inoki, Ali and his entourage had signed on expecting the fight to be an

exhibition An exhibition, in the most general sense, is an organized presentation and display of a selection of items. In practice, exhibitions usually occur within a cultural or educational setting such as a museum, art gallery, park, library, exhibiti ...

rather than a real contest. It was only when they went to see Inoki train six days before the fight, and saw him use a series of brutal

kick A kick is a physical strike using the leg, in unison usually with an area of the knee or lower using the foot, heel, tibia (shin), ball of the foot, blade of the foot, toes or knee (the latter is also known as a knee strike). This type of ...

s and grapples on sparring partners, that they sensed it would be a legitimate fight. Inoki alleges he was asked by Ali, "OK, so when do we do the rehearsal?", with Inoki replying: "No, no. This isn't an exhibition. It's a real fight!" In the days leading up to the fight, Ali and Inoki's representatives began to renegotiate the rules. A list of restrictions was imposed on Inoki. He would not be allowed to throw, grapple or tackle Ali and could not land any kicks unless he had one knee on the mat. Ali's camp also demanded that the rules not be made public before the fight. The rule stipulations were made public by

New Japan Pro-Wrestling (NJPW) is a Puroresu, Japanese professional-wrestling Professional wrestling promotion, promotion founded on January 13, 1972, by Antonio Inoki, and based in Nakano, Tokyo. It is currently majority owned by card-game company Bushiroad, with TV As ...

on May 25, 1976 and an amended version reflecting Ali's additional demands on June 23. Judo expert Donn Draeger noted, "The rules have been so seriously modified that the contest is no longer boxing versus wrestling. Unless this were done there would be no way to choreograph the match and make it look convincing. Ali can grapple or punch the man down; Inoki is not allowed to leg-dive or tackle. That latter restriction is the same as prohibiting Ali from jabbing. What a farce!" On June 23, 1976, frustrated by repeated rule changes clearly designed to limit what he could do against Ali, Inoki proposed a winner-take-all of personal assets and the entire promotional revenue as proof of how serious he was about the match during the final signing ceremony three days before the battle; Ali accepted and signed the contract. However, on the next day, Ali's people demanded the contract to be voided, explaining that Ali cannot singlehandedly agree to any match without consulting his manager and promoter. Professional wrestler

Bret Hart Bret Sergeant Hart (born July 2, 1957) is a Canadian retired professional wrestler. A member of the Hart wrestling family and a second-generation wrestler, he has an amateur wrestling background at Ernest Manning High School and Mount Royal U ...

, who started touring Japan in 1980, claimed in his 2008 autobiography that "the black Muslims who were backing Ali made it clear that if Inoki laid a finger on their champ, they would kill him. That's why Inoki lay on his back for fifteen rounds, kicking Ali in the shins so as not to use his hands". This claim was lent credibility by then NJPW referee Mr. Takahashi, who assured it was Ali's entourage and not Ali himself who demanded the restriction. In 2016, the referee Gene LeBell further denied that there were actual limitations on kicking or grappling and said all types of kicking, throwing and grappling were allowed. At a public weigh-in the day before the match, Ali came in at slightly above 99 kg (218.3 lbs.) and Inoki tipped the scales at around 100.5 kg (221.6 lbs.)

Fight summary

Entrances

Inoki made his entrance first, wearing his signature purple robe and being accompanied by former professional and Olympic

amateur wrestler Amateur wrestling is a variant of wrestling practiced at Olympic, collegiate, scholastic, and other levels. There are two international wrestling styles performed at the Olympic Games The modern Olympic Games (Olympics; ) are the worl ...

, Olympic

judo is an unarmed gendai budō, modern Japanese martial art, combat sport, Olympic sport (since 1964), and the most prominent form of jacket wrestling competed internationally.『日本大百科全書』電子版【柔道】(CD-ROM version of Encyc ...

medalist Seiji Sakaguchi, wrestling trainer Kotetsu Yamamoto, and star wrestler (and former boxer) Kantaro Hoshino. Ali was the second entrance, sporting a red and white robe and being followed by his

manager Management (or managing) is the administration of organizations, whether businesses, nonprofit organizations, or a government bodies through business administration, nonprofit management, or the political science sub-field of public administra ...

Herbert Muhammad, his trainers Angelo Dundee and Wali Muhammad, his cornerman Drew Bundini Brown, and Dr. Ferdie Pacheco. For this occasion, his entourage had been reinforced with professional wrestler

Freddie Blassie Frederick Kenneth Blassie (February 8, 1918 – June 2, 2003) was an American professional wrestler and manager, known by the ring name "Classy" Freddie Blassie. Renowned as "The Hollywood Fashion Plate","Classy" Freddie Blassie with Keith Ellio ...

taekwondo Taekwondo (; ; ) is a Korean martial art and combat sport involving primarily kicking techniques and punching. "Taekwondo" can be translated as ''tae'' ("strike with foot"), ''kwon'' ("strike with hand"), and ''do'' ("the art or way"). In ad ...

master

Jhoon Goo Rhee Rhee Jhoon-goo (; Hanja: 李俊九, January 7, 1932–April 30, 2018), commonly known as Jhoon Rhee, was a Korean-American taekwondo practitioner. He was widely recognized as the "father of American taekwondo" for introducing the Korean martia ...

(considered the "Father of American Taekwondo"), and promoter Butch Lewis. He donned four-ounce gloves, unusually smaller than those typically used in heavyweight boxing matches, loaded with tape and gauze.

Rounds 1–5

As soon as the opening bell rang, Inoki ran the distance between Ali and himself and slid at the legs of Ali, who sidestepped the attack. Inoki stayed on the ground and started

ing and sweeping for Ali's legs. After scoring a hard kick to the right leg, Inoki stood up momentarily, but returned to his field and continued throwing kicks, landing a side kick which forced Ali's corner to instruct him to back away from Inoki. Ali taunted Inoki to stand up, but the wrestler answered by continuing his kicking strategy, connecting with a few of them until the end of the round. The second and third rounds unfolded the same way, with Inoki taking refuge from possible punches on the mat and kicking the legs of an infuriated Ali. The boxer maneuvered to avoid several of the kicks, but Inoki crab crawled across the mat towards him and kept connecting kicks to the legs. By the third round, a wound had appeared on Ali's left knee, and the crowd had started to boo at the lack of solid action. Ali began walking around the ring, out of reach of Inoki's kicks, taunting him by shouting "Coward Inoki! Inoki no fight!" and "One punch! I want one punch!" In the fourth round, Inoki missed a jumping side kick but, still on his back, crawled towards Ali, trapping him in a corner. After referee LeBell restarted action in the center of the ring, Inoki returned to his strategy, prompting Ali to scream "I thought Inoki could wrestle!" and "Inoki girl!" multiple times. Inoki eventually trapped him again in a corner and started kicking wildly at his thighs, prompting Ali to leap up on to the ropes and tuck his legs underneath him in an attempt to avoid the strikes. A new restart by LeBell came near of the end of the round. The fifth round followed closely the already familiar pattern of the match, with Inoki landing kicks from his back and Ali looking for ways to counter it. The round did feature, however, an instance in which Inoki knocked Ali off his feet with one of his kicks. Upon recovering and dancing around to avoid more hits, the boxer managed to grab Inoki's boot and drag him a short distance, but the bell sounded before anything could follow up. Ali's legs were already bruised and bleeding due to the accumulated kicks, the sight of which finally drew some appreciation from the crowd after the round ended.

Rounds 6–10

In round six, Inoki repeated his usual jumping side kick into lying on the canvas. One of the subsequent kicks landed toe-first on Ali's groin, gaining a warning from LeBell, but he followed up with two more successful legal kicks. Ali got hold of Inoki's boots with the goal of immobilizing him for a punch, but Inoki, wiser in grappling, countered by grabbing Ali's left shoe, wrapping his right leg around Ali's right calf and sweeping down to the mat. Inoki sat on Ali and turned towards his legs, pursuing a

leglock A leglock is a joint lock that is directed at joints of the human leg, leg such as the ankle, knee or hip joint. A leglock which is directed at joints in the foot is sometimes referred to as a foot lock and a lock at the hip as a hip lock. Leglock ...

, but Ali managed to swing one of his feet over the ring rope, which called for a standing restart. Knowing his chance had waned, Inoki still threw a back elbow strike to Ali's face while action was being stopped, gaining a warning and a point deducted by LeBell due to the boxer's protests. As the bout resumed, Ali tried to kick Inoki while illegally holding the ropes for balance, attracting his own reprimand. In the seventh round, it was Inoki who goaded Ali to meet him on the ground, but Ali refused and threw a pair of kicks that missed. Ali finally threw his first punch, a long jab to Inoki's face, only for Inoki to knock him down with a sweeping kick. Although the crowd chanted for Ali, he seemed wary of trying to strike again, allowing for another landed kick for the wrestler. After the round ended, the bloody state of Ali's left leg worried Dr. Pacheco, who rubbed it with ice and ointment. Meanwhile, Dundee went over to the Japanese corner and talked to Gotch, claiming that one of Inoki's brass

eyelets image:Eyelets For Curtain.jpg, Curtain grommets, used among others in shower curtains A grommet is a ring or edge strip inserted into a hole through thin material, typically a sheet of textile fabric, sheet metal or composite of carbon fiber, wo ...

had come loose from his boot and was cutting Ali's legs. He demanded that they taped the tips of his shoelaces, and so they did. The match's pattern did not change in round eight, where Ali had predicted he would finish Inoki. The Japanese wrestler connected a pair of kicks that dropped Ali again, although LeBell mistakenly warned him for a low blow. He was also forced to stop the match several times to reapply tape onto the tip of Inoki's right boot. Inoki shows irritation by these repeated halts by LeBell. The uneventful round ended with Ali still taunting Inoki and shouting "Inoki nothing!" The mistaken low blow was owing to LeBell's not having a clear view, yet it cost Inoki a point deduction. In the ninth, Ali passed to attack. He crouched down and sought for jabs while dancing, drawing chants from the crowd. He also attempted to circle the supine Inoki around, trying to get Inoki to return to his feet to avoid being outmaneuvered, and thus forcefully entering hitting range. However, Inoki adhered to his own strategy and landed a kick that sent Ali staggering to his corner. Inoki connected another, and by this point Ali's repeated tumbling made evident to the crowd the damage to his legs. In the tenth, Ali threw his second punch, landing a jab in Inoki's face, but the execution of the move left his leg open to another kick. Although Inoki followed up with an inside leg kick and an outside one to the same leg, the crowd chanted for him to fight standing, so he charged at Ali, who clamped to the ring ropes. The rest of the round went without new events, so the crowd was now solidly against Inoki, despite Ali engaging in increasingly worried talks with his team.

Rounds 11–15

The eleventh round saw Ali trying a new tactic. As suggested by his cornerman Rhee, a taekwondo expert, Ali would try to block Inoki's kicks with his gloves and arms in order to protect his leg. This allowed Ali to catch and twist Inoki's foot, although he lacked the grappling knowledge to turn it into a submission move. The boxer's blocks were relatively successful, but Inoki had continued to land kicks, and Ali's corner was forced to tend his leg again. In Inoki's own corner, Gotch advised Inoki to either tackle Ali down or capitalize on the next time Ali fell down, so he could pin him and finish him by submission. In round twelve, Ali became confident after blocking several, though not all, of Inoki's kicks. Inoki then got up and landed a clean low kick, but this drew protests, as rules impeded him from kicking standing. Ali's corner told him to capitalize and attack Inoki, but the latter immediately returned to safe ground, impeding further action. When the round ended, Ali's left leg was so swollen that, according to reviewers, it "appeared to be double the size of the right." In the thirteenth round, it was Ali who became the aggressor, taking the center of the ring and backing Inoki towards a corner. The wrestler then feigned a takedown attempt to push Ali towards the ropes, as he could not execute a true technique due to the ruleset. Afterwards, Ali taunted him by blocking with his glove, but Inoki did not kick as expected, as he charged at Ali again. The wrestler grabbed a waist lock, threatening with a

suplex A suplex is an Offense (sports), offensive move used in Wrestling, sport wrestling as well as amateur wrestling and professional wrestling. It is a throw that involves lifting the opponents and Bridge (grappling), bridging or rolling to slam the ...

, but Ali hurriedly grabbed the rope. During the subsequent clinch, Ali put his weight on Inoki, to which the latter answered with an illegal knee strike to the groin. Among the protests, LeBell asked Ali if he could continue, and it seemed the boxer was going to exit the ring, but the referee convinced him to return. Restarting the bout, Inoki threw a tentative low kick, but Ali responded by firing and connecting two jabs, forcing him to go to the canvas as usual. After the round ended, Inoki was deducted another point due to the groin strike. In the fourteenth round, Inoki feigned some bare-fisted jabs and a takedown before dropping low for another of his kicks. Ali clamped to the ropes without provocation, drawing protests by Inoki. The contenders exchanged taunts, goading each other to meet in their respective field of expertise. Ali then landed a stiff left jab at the very end of the round. Before the fifteenth and final round, Inoki and Ali shook hands while the crowd acclaimed in anticipation of a possible climactic finish. However, Inoki's strategy went unchanged, even though Ali openly reminded him of the bout's nearby ending. Inoki landed several kicks more before Ali landed a counter jab, but nothing came from it, and when the final bell sound, both men shook hands again and embraced among a mix of cheers and jeers. After Ali gave a speech about how he thought himself as the winner due to Inoki's "cowardice", the judges gathered to decide the result. Veteran professional wrestler Kokichi Endo scored it 74–72 for Ali, while boxing judge Ko Toyama scored it 72–68 for Inoki, thus leaving the weight of the decision to referee LeBell. Taking into consideration the points deducted from Inoki, he scored it 71–71 and thereby a draw.

Aftermath

The result meant no one had to lose face; Inoki could claim he would have won had it not been for the penalties, whereas Ali could defend himself by saying his opponent had cheated. However, the fight was poorly received. The crowd at the Budokan threw rubbish into the ring and chanted "Money back! Money back!" Donn Draeger said of the response: "The Budokan janitorial people took almost a full day to clean up the garbage that was hurled at the two 'combatants' as the result of their lousy performance". Ali's left leg was so badly swollen and bleeding that it led to an infection. He also suffered two blood clots in his legs affecting his mobility for the remainder of his boxing career. At one point amputation was also discussed, although Ali insisted to the press that it was nothing serious. Riots and boos happened not only in the Budokan, but also among the crowds of broadcasts of the event, as they were unaware of the restrictions put on Inoki.

Dave Meltzer David Allen Meltzer (born October 24, 1959) is an American journalist, author, and historian who reports on professional wrestling and mixed martial arts. Since 1983, he has been the publisher and editor of the ''Wrestling Observer Newsletter' ...

explained it as "they were expecting something like a cross between a boxing match and a pro wrestling match and got nothing resembling either." Only after the fight could Inoki explain himself to a world critical of his tactics during the fight. "I was handicapped by the rules that said no tackling, no karate chops, no punching on the mat. I kept my distance to stay away of Ali's punches."

Viewership and revenue

The 14,500-seat

arena was sold out. Ticket prices started from ($17) for the nosebleed section, while ringside seats for the public cost ($1,000) and "royal ringside" seats for sponsors cost $3,000. The fight was watched by an estimated 1.4 billion viewers worldwide, including more than 54 million viewers in Japan. In the United States, the fight sold at least 2 million or more

pay-per-view Pay-per-view (PPV) is a type of pay television or webcast service that enables a viewer to pay to watch individual events via private telecast. Events can be purchased through a multichannel television platform using their electronic program ...

buys on closed-circuit theater TV. At a ticket price of $10, the fight grossed at least (inflation-adjusted ) or more from closed-circuit theater TV revenue in the United States.

Legacy

The fight is considered by boxing writers and fans as one of the most embarrassing moments in the careers of both Ali and his cornermen. Rhee considered the match and their participation as "shameful", and Pacheco would even deny to have taken part in the event until forty years later. Referee LeBell was the only person who remembered the match in a positive light, calling it a "very interesting, and a great memory. ... It was a 'thinking' fight. It was two champions in their arts."Thomas Nilsson, ''A Conversation with "The Toughest Man Alive": "Judo" Gene LeBell Has Seen and Done It All in a 50-Year Martial Arts Career'', Black Belt magazine, February 1999 Despite the challenge, Ali and Inoki became good friends following the fight. Inoki started using Ali's theme music, "Ali Bombaye (Zaire Chant) I" (taken from Ali's 1977 biographical film), as his own signature tune, and borrowed the catchphrase "boma ye" from Ali's fans at the Rumble in the Jungle. Ali would continue to box for the next five years. In 1978, he lost the WBA and WBC heavyweight championships to

Leon Spinks Leon Spinks (July 11, 1953 – February 5, 2021) was an American professional boxer who competed from 1977 to 1995. In only his eighth professional fight, he won the undisputed heavyweight championship in 1978 after defeating Muhammad Ali in a s ...

, but regained the WBA title (the WBC had stripped Spinks of his title due to his refusal to fight

Ken Norton Kenneth Howard Norton Sr. (August 9, 1943 – September 18, 2013) was an American actor and professional boxer who competed from 1967 to 1981. He was awarded the World Boxing Council, WBC world heavyweight championship in 1978, after winning a ...

, the Number 1 contender) in a rematch the same year. In 1986, Spinks would also fight and lose to Inoki in the eighth round of a match for the WWF World Martial Arts Heavyweight Championship. After a two-year retirement, Ali would lose to

Larry Holmes Larry Holmes (born November 3, 1949) is an American former professional boxer who competed from 1973 to 2002 and was world heavyweight champion from 1978 until 1985. He is often considered to be one of the greatest heavyweight boxers of all time. ...

in 1980, and following a unanimous-decision loss to

Trevor Berbick Trevor Berbick (1 August 1954 – 28 October 2006) was a Jamaican professional boxer who competed from 1976 to 2000. He won the WBC heavyweight title in 1986 by defeating Pinklon Thomas, then lost it in his first defense in the same year to Mi ...

in 1981, retired from boxing. Inoki continued to wrestle for the next 22 years. In 1989, Inoki established his own political group, the Sports and Peace Party. He was elected to the

House of Councillors The is the upper house of the National Diet of Japan. The House of Representatives (Japan), House of Representatives is the lower house. The House of Councillors is the successor to the pre-war House of Peers (Japan), House of Peers. If the t ...

of the

Diet of Japan , transcription_name = ''Kokkai'' , legislature = 215th Session of the National Diet , coa_pic = Flag of Japan.svg , house_type = Bicameral , houses = , foundation=29 November 1890(), leader1_type ...

. In 1990, he went to negotiate with

Saddam Hussein Saddam Hussein (28 April 1937 – 30 December 2006) was an Iraqi politician and revolutionary who served as the fifth president of Iraq from 1979 until Saddam Hussein statue destruction, his overthrow in 2003 during the 2003 invasion of Ira ...

over the release of Japanese citizens being held hostage in Iraq. Ali took part in Inoki's controversial two-day pro wrestling event in

Pyongyang Pyongyang () is the Capital city, capital and largest city of North Korea, where it is sometimes labeled as the "Capital of the Revolution" (). Pyongyang is located on the Taedong River about upstream from its mouth on the Yellow Sea. Accordi ...

North Korea North Korea, officially the Democratic People's Republic of Korea (DPRK), is a country in East Asia. It constitutes the northern half of the Korea, Korean Peninsula and borders China and Russia to the north at the Yalu River, Yalu (Amnok) an ...

, titled the Pyongyang International Sports and Culture Festival for Peace, where Inoki wrestled

Ric Flair Richard Morgan Fliehr (born February 25, 1949), known professionally as Ric Flair, is an American retired professional wrestler. Widely regarded as one of the greatest professional wrestlers of all time, Flair's career spanned 50 years. He is ...

in the main event. Inoki eventually left office in 1995 amid accusations he had been bribed by the

Yakuza , also known as , are members of transnational organized crime syndicates originating in Japan. The Japanese police and media (by request of the police) call them , while the yakuza call themselves . The English equivalent for the term ''yak ...

. In 2012, Inoki revealed that he had converted to

Shia Islam Shia Islam is the second-largest Islamic schools and branches, branch of Islam. It holds that Muhammad in Islam, Muhammad designated Ali ibn Abi Talib () as both his political Succession to Muhammad, successor (caliph) and as the spiritual le ...

in 1990 and adopted the Islamic name "Muhammad Hussain Inoki".. The fight played a role in the history of

, particularly in

Japan Japan is an island country in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean off the northeast coast of the Asia, Asian mainland, it is bordered on the west by the Sea of Japan and extends from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea ...

. The match inspired Inoki's students

Masakatsu Funaki is a Japanese actor, mixed martial artist and professional wrestler known professionally as , who has previously wrestled in All Japan Pro Wrestling (AJPW), New Japan Pro-Wrestling (NJPW), Pro Wrestling Fujiwara Gumi (PWFG), Newborn UWF (UWF) ...

and

Minoru Suzuki (born June 17, 1968) is a Japanese Professional wrestling, professional wrestler and former Mixed martial arts, mixed martial artist, known for his tenure in New Japan Pro-Wrestling (NJPW), where he is a former one-time IWGP Intercontinental Ch ...

to found

Pancrase is a Japanese mixed martial arts (MMA) promoter (entertainment), promotion company based in Tokyo. It was founded in 1993 by professional wrestlers Masakatsu Funaki and Minoru Suzuki. The name was based on pankration, a fighting sport in the An ...

in 1993, which in turn inspired the foundation of

Pride Fighting Championships PRIDE Fighting Championships (Pride or Pride FC, founded as KRS-Pride) was a Japanese mixed martial arts promotion company. Its inaugural event was held at the Tokyo Dome on October 11, 1997. Pride held more than sixty mixed martial arts even ...

in 1997. Pride was later acquired by its rival

Ultimate Fighting Championship The Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) is an American mixed martial arts (MMA) promoter (entertainment), promotion company based in Las Vegas, Nevada. It is owned and operated by TKO Group Holdings, a majority owned subsidiary of Endeavor ( ...

in 2007. In 1998, 38 years after his wrestling debut, Inoki retired. Ali flew out from the United States to watch Inoki win his final match against Don "The Predator" Frye. After the match, Ali climbed into the ring and hugged Inoki. Ali's representative read a message over the PA:

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Ali Vs. Inoki 1976 in professional wrestling Muhammad Ali Mixed martial arts matches Mixed martial arts in Japan History of professional wrestling Professional wrestling in Tokyo Sports competitions in Tokyo Events at the Nippon Budokan Hughes Television Network Boxing on ITV