Top 5 iconic Muhammad Ali fights

4. Ali vs. Liston 2

The outcome of the second Ali-Liston fight is still one of the most controversial ever in the history of the sport.

Halfway through the first round, Liston threw a left jab while Ali leaned back, keeping his fists low to deliver a short right counter punch (later named the ”Phantom Punch) that rocked the former champion, sending him to the canvas.

Here’s where things start to turn south.

Liston rolled over but wasn’t able to get to his feet, while the referee forgot to take the count since a fired-up Ali refused to go to a neutral corner.

However, after 17 seconds, Sonny finally got up and the ref decided to start the fight – just to wave it off a few seconds later, declaring Ali as the winner.

”I could have continued if I had picked up the count,” Liston claimed after the fight, but admitted that Ali punched way harder than he could imagine.

The controversial ending, with the so-called ”Phantom Punch”, is one of the most debated in boxing history.

Since the crowd and experts could not see Ali deliver the exceptionally quick right hand, many believed that the fight was fixed and Liston took a dive. The accusations of a fixed fight were also fueled by Sonny’s connection to the Mafia, who controlled a big part of American boxing at the time.

However, former heavyweight champion Floyd Patterson, who was seated at ringside, in the best position to see the knockout, claimed Ali in fact threw a ”perfect right hand” to floor Liston.