Saturday, May 7, 2011

News for henry cooper dead aged 76

News for henry cooper dead aged 76, A great fighter and a gentleman': Muhammad Ali leads tributes to British boxing legend Henry Cooper, Boxer Sir Henry Cooper OBE, who once famously felled boxing legend Muhammad Ali, has died aged 76. Cooper, a former British heavyweight champion, died just two days before his 77th birthday at his son’s house at Oxted in Surrey

The man was affectionately known as ‘Our Enry’ and collected a host of honours thanks to his fierce left hook called ‘Enry’s Ammer’.

The retired English heavyweight famously fought Ali - then known by his birth name Cassius Clay - twice, firstly in 1963 at Wembley Stadium.
In the final seconds of the fourth round Cooper felled firm favourite Ali with a jab of his left hook, but his head hit the ropes - not the floor - so it did not count.

Ali said several decades later that Cooper ‘had hit him so hard that his ancestors in Africa felt it’.

Ali then asked for a spare pair of gloves, giving him time to recover from the blow. Cooper claimed this lasted several minutes and after that day, a spare pair of gloves was always required at ringside.

A blood bath ensued and the referee was forced to stop the fight in Ali’s favour, despite Cooper being up on the scorecards.

In 1966 Cooper fought Ali, and the reigning world heavyweight champion, for a second time. Cooper lost on a technical knockout - despite being up on the scorecards for a second time - because he was bleeding badly from his eye.

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