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Bygone Days: Muhammad Ali at the Piano in the Lounge at the Tropicana
Bygone Days: Muhammad Ali at the Piano in the Lounge at the Tropicana
Among other things, Las Vegas in “olden days” was noted for its lounge shows. Circa 1970, for the price of two drinks, one could have caught the Ike and Tina Turner Review at the International. They performed three shows nightly, the last at 3:15 am, and they blew the doors off the joint.
The weirdest “lounge show” in Las Vegas wasn’t a late-night offering, but an impromptu duet performed in the mid-afternoon for a select standing-room audience in the lounge at the Tropicana. Sharing the piano in the Blue Room in a concert that could not have lasted much more than a minute were Muhammad Ali and world light heavyweight champion Bob Foster. The date was June 25, 1972, a Sunday.
What brought about this odd collaboration was a weigh-in, not the official weigh-in, which would happen the next day, but a dress rehearsal conducted for the benefit of news reporters and photographers and a few invited guests such as the actor Jack Palance who would serve as the color commentator alongside the legendary Mel Allen on the closed-circuit telecast. On June 27, Ali and Foster would appear in separate bouts at the Las Vegas Convention Center. Ali was pit against Jerry Quarry in a rematch of their 1970 tilt in Atlanta; Foster would be defending his title against Jerry’s younger brother, Mike Quarry.
In those days, whenever Las Vegas hosted a prizefight that was a major news story, it was customary for the contestants to arrive in town about three weeks before their fight. They held public workouts, perhaps for a nominal fee, at the hotel-casino where they were lodged.
Muhammad Ali and Bob Foster were sequestered and trained at Caesars Palace. The Quarry brothers were domiciled a few blocks away at the Tropicana.
The Trop, as the locals called it, was the last major hotel-casino on the south end of the Strip, a stretch of road, officially Highway 91, the ran for 2.2 miles. When the resort opened in 1957, it had three hundred rooms. Like similar properties along the famous Strip, it would eventually go vertical, maturing into a high-rise.
In 1959, entertainment director Lou Walters (father of Barbara) imported a lavish musical revue from Paris, the Folies Bergere. The extravaganza with its topless showgirls became embedded in the Las Vegas mystique. The show, which gave the Tropicana its identity, ran for almost 50 full years, becoming the longest-running show in Las Vegas history.
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Although the Quarry brothers were on the premises, Ali and Foster arrived at the Blue Room first. After Dr. Donald Romeo performed his perfunctory examinations, there was nothing to do but stand around and wait for the brothers to show up. It was then that Foster spied a grand piano in the corner of the room.
Taking a seat at the bench, he tinkled the keys, producing something soft and bluesy. “Move over man,” said Ali, not the sort of person to be upstaged at anything. Taking a seat alongside Foster at the piano, he banged out something that struck the untrained ear of veteran New York scribe Dick Young as boogie-woogie.
When the Quarry brothers arrived, Ali went through his usual antics, shouting epithets at Jerry Quarry as Jerry was having his blood pressure taken. “These make the best fights, when you get some white hopes and some spooks,…er, I mean some colored folks,” Young quoted Ali as saying.
This comment was greeted with a big laugh, but Jerry Quarry, renowned for his fearsome left hook, delivered a better line after Ali had stormed out. Surveying the room, he noticed several attractive young ladies, dressed provocatively. “I can see I ain’t the only hooker in here,” he said.
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The doubleheader needed good advance pub because both bouts were considered mismatches. In the first Ali-Quarry fight, Quarry suffered a terrible gash above his left eye before his corner pulled him out after three rounds. Ali was a 5/1 favorite in the rematch. Bob Foster, who would be making his tenth title defense, was an 8/1 favorite over Mike Quarry who was undefeated (35-0) but had been brought along very carefully and was still only 21 years old. (In his syndicated newspaper column, oddsmaker Jimmy “The Greek” Snyder said the odds were 200/1 against both fights going the distance, but there wasn’t a bookie in the country that would take that bet.)
The Fights
There were no surprises. It was a sad night for the Quarry clan at the Las Vegas Convention Center.
Muhammad Ali, clowning in the early rounds, took charge in the fifth and Jerry Quarry was in bad shape when the referee waived it off 19 seconds into the seventh round. In the semi-wind-up, Bob Foster retained his title in a more brutal fashion. He knocked the younger Quarry brother into dreamland with a thunderous left hook just as the fourth round was about to end. Mike Quarry lay on the canvas for a good three minutes before his handlers were able to revive him.
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In the ensuing years, the Tropicana was far less invested in boxing than many of its rivals on the Strip, but there was a wisp of activity in the mid-1980s. A noteworthy card, on June 30, 1985, saw Jimmy Paul successfully defend his world lightweight title with a 14th-round stoppage of Robin Blake. Freddie Roach, a featherweight with a big local following and former U.S. Olympic gold medalist Henry Tillman appeared on the undercard. The lead promoter of this show, which aired on a Sunday afternoon on CBS (with Southern Nevada blacked out) was the indefatigable Bob Arum who seemingly has no intention of leaving this mortal coil until he has out-lived every Las Vegas casino-resort born in the twentieth century.
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I may drive past the Tropicana in the next few hours and give it a last look, mindful that Muhammad Ali once frolicked here, however briefly. But I won’t be there for the implosion.
On Wednesday morning, Oct. 9, shortly after 2 a.m., the Tropicana, shuttered since April, will be reduced to rubble. On its grounds will rise a stadium for the soon-to-be-former Oakland A’s baseball team.
A recognized authority on the history of prizefighting and the history of American sports gambling, TSS editor-in-chief Arne K. Lang is the author of five books including “Prizefighting: An American History,” released by McFarland in 2008 and re-released in a paperback edition in 2020.
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Japan’s budding superstar Junto Nakatani knocked out Petch Chitpattana in a battle of southpaws to retain the WBC bantamweight world title on Monday in Tokyo.
It was the first time the rugged Thai fighter was ever stopped.
“This was not my first time knocking out that kind of opponent,” Nakatani said.
The three-division world champion Nakatani (29-0, 22 KOs) became the first fighter to knock out Chitpattana (76-2, 53 KOs) and performed the feat in front of a large Japanese audience at Ariake Arena in Japan. It was also his third consecutive knockout as a bantamweight.
“I’m happy about it,” Nakatani said.
The left-handed boxer-puncher expected to be in a firefight from the Thai fighter who had 78 pro fights of experience.
“He was a strong opponent,” said the champion.
During the first three rounds, Nakatani merely probed Chitpattana’s defense and style of fighting. Though he throttled the Thai boxer with a lead left cross in the first two rounds he did not commit until the fourth round.
Then things got interesting.
Chitpattana, who also goes by the name Tasana Salapat, opened up his attack in the fourth round with blistering body shots and short combinations. Both fighters freely exchanged body shots and blows to the head. As if measuring who was tougher.
In the fifth round the furious exchanges continued with both fighters connecting with right hooks. Nakatani began concentrating with uppercuts to the chin as Chitpattana belted the Japanese fighter’s body. Both fighters looked to hurt the other and jabs were a memory. Only power shots were fired by both.
Now it was total war.
The challenger was eager to see who was tougher and determined it was now or never. Both exchanged with abandon in the sixth round with Nakatani firing three and four-punch combinations. It was one of these combinations that saw the Japanese star deliver Chitpattana to the canvas for a count of eight. He got up and fired back looking to score his own knockdown. Nakatani measured his challenger carefully and unleashed a three-punch combination that violently sent Chitpattana reeling. The referee quickly stopped the fight.
Nakatani was declared the winner by technical knockout. The official time of the stoppage was 2:59 of round six.
“Please keep an eye on me,” said Nakatani to the crowd and those watching on international television.
Other Bouts
South Africa’s Phumelele Cafu (11-0-3) floored four-division world titlist Kosei Tanaka (20-2) and out-fought the WBO super fly champion to become the new champion by split-decision.
“Its something I always dreamed about,” said Cafu.
It was quickly evident that Cafu was able to easily land the left hook. But after several rounds of connecting with the left, it was a right-hand counter that dropped Tanaka for an eight-count in the fifth round.
Tanaka rallied furiously with body shots and volume punching. But he could not avoid the power shots coming from the South African fighter who had never fought outside of his country. After 12 rounds one judge scored it 114-113 for Tanaka but two other judges saw it 114-113 for Cafu.
WBO flyweight titlist Anthony Olascuaga and former WBO light flyweight titlist Jonathan “Bomba” Gonzalez accidentally clashed heads in the first round and a cut over the eye of the challenger forced the fight to be stopped at 2:25 of the opening round. It was ruled a No Decision.
Former kickboxing champion turned boxer Tenshin Nasukawa (5-0) defeated Gerwin Asilo (9-1) handily to win a regional bantamweight title after 10 rounds by unanimous decision.
Nasukawa, a southpaw, showed off his quick hands and floored Filipino fighter Asilo in the ninth round. It was a battle between quick counter-punchers, but it was Nasukawa’s power that seemed to intimidate Asilo. After 10 rounds the scores were 98-91 twice and 97-92 for Nasukawa.
Nasukawa is known by American fans for fighting an exhibition with Floyd Mayweather.
Sunday in Japan
Seiya Tsutsumi (12-0-2, 8 KOs) upset Takuma Inoue to win the WBA bantamweight world title by unanimous decision. Tsutsumi scored a knockdown of Inoue and won by scores 117-110, 115-112, 114-113.
Kenshiro Teraji (24-1, 15 KOs) knocked out Cristofer Rosales (37-7) to win the vacant WBC flyweight world title at six seconds of the 11th round. He moved up in weight after a lengthy hold of the WBC light flyweight title.
Shokichi Iwata (14-1, 11 KOs) knocked out Spain’s Jairo Noriega (14-1) at the end of the third round to win the WBO light flyweight world title.
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For the first time in the history of the 175-pound class, all four meaningful belts were on the line when Artur Beterbiev locked horns with Dmitry Bivol today at Kingdom Arena in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia. When the smoke cleared, Beterbiev prevailed on a majority decision, adding Bivol’s WBA and lineal title to his own collection of belts to emerge as the undisputed light heavyweight champion.
This was a classic confrontation between a boxer and a puncher. Beterbiev had won all 20 of his pro fights inside the distance. Bivol was also undefeated but had scored only nine stoppages among his 23 wins and nine of his 10 previous fights had gone the full 12 rounds. As an amateur, Beterbiev had lost twice to Oleksandr Usyk, the second of those setbacks in the quarterfinal round of the 2012 London Olympics, and it was no surprise that the 33-year-old Bivol, the younger man by six years, went to post a small favorite.
This proved to be a tactical fight that was a disappointment when measured against the pre-fight hype. Neither man was ever in jeopardy of going down and at the conclusion both acknowledged they could have done better.
In the first two rounds, Bivol was credited with out-landing Beterbiev 26-10. But the template was set. Although Bivol landed more punches in the early-going, one could see that Beterbiev was stronger and that his straight-line pressure would likely pay dividends over his opponent who burned up more energy moving side-to-side.
Beterbiev showed no ill effects from the torn meniscus that forced him to withdraw from the originally scheduled date (June 1). At the conclusion, two of the judges favored him (116-112, 115-113) and the other had it a draw (114-114).
IBF Cruiserweight Title Fight
Australian southpaw Jai Opetaia, widely regarded as the best cruiserweight on the planet, took charge in the opening round and wore down Jack Massey whose trainer Joe Gallagher wisely pulled him out at the two-minute mark of the sixth round.
Opetaia, who repeated his win over Maris Briedis in his previous bout, sending the talented Latvian off into retirement, improved to 26-0 (20 KOs) in what was his third straight appearance in this ring. A 31-year-old Englishman, Massey lost for the third time in 25 pro starts.
Opetaia’s next fight is expected to come against the winner of the forthcoming match between Gilberto “Zurdo” Ramirez and Chris Billam-Smith. They risk their respective belts next month on a Golden Boy Promotions card here in Riyadh.
Other Bouts of Note
The bout between heavyweights Fabio Wardley and Frazer Clarke was the semi-wind-up. It was a rematch of their March 31 tussle in London. At the end of that bruising 12-round barnburner, Wardley was more marked-up but remained undefeated and retained his British title when the judges returned a draw. Clarke likewise skirted defeat after opening his pro career 8-0.
Today’s sequel was a brutal, one-sided fight that never saw a second bell. It was all over at the 2:22 mark of the opening round, dictating a long intermission before the featured attraction even though it would commence 15 minutes ahead of schedule, going off at 3 pm PT.
Both men came out swinging but the Ipswich man, Wardley, had heavier ammunition. A big right hand left Clarke with a visible dent near his left ear. When the end came, Clarke, was slumped against the ropes, his eyes glazed and his jaw looking as if it may have been broken. (He was removed to a hospital where he was reportedly being treated for a fractured cheekbone.)
Wardley, who carried 242 pounds on his six-foot-five frame, never had a proper amateur career, but having knocked out 17 of his 19 opponents, he stands on the cusp of some big-money fights. “I’d be shocked if he’s not fighting for a world title next year,” said his promoter Frank Warren.
In a battle between two 35-year-old middleweights, Chris Eubank Jr advanced to 34-3 (25 KOs) with a seventh-round stoppage of Poland’s Kamil Szeremeta (25-3-2). A 25/1 favorite, Eubank had his Polish adversary on the canvas four times before the bout was halted at the 1:50 mark of the seventh frame. The match played out in a manner mindful of Szeremeta’s bout with Gennady Golovkin in 2020, another bad night at the office for the overmatched Pole.
The knockdowns came in rounds one, six, and twice in round seven. The final knockdowns were the result of body punches. Szeremeta had his moments, but these were due largely to Eubank’s lapses in concentration; he was never really in any danger.
After Eubank had his hand raised, Conor Benn entered the ring and confronted him. The sons of British boxing luminaries were initially set to fight on Oct. 8, 2022. That match, expected to draw a full house to London’s 20,000-seat O2 Arena, was shipwrecked by the British Boxing Board of Control. Benn’s antics in Riyadh are an indication that it may yet come to fruition.
In a 10-round contest, Skye Nicolson outclassed Raven Chapman, winning by scores of 99-91 and 98-92 twice. The Aussie was making her fourth start of 2024 and the third defense of her WBC featherweight title.
Nicolson, who improved to 12-0 (1), hopes that her next title defense is in Australia where she has fought only once since turning pro, that back in 2022, but she would gladly put that on the backburner for a date with Amanda Serrano. It was the first pro loss for Chapman (9-1), a 30-year-old Englishwoman.
Photo credit: Mikey Williams / Top Rank
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Avila Perspective, Chap. 300: Eastern Horizons — Bivol, Beterbiev and Japan
All eyes are pointed east, if you are a boxing fan.
First, light heavyweights Artur Beterbiev and Dmitry Bivol meet in Saudi Arabia to determine who is the baddest at 175 pounds. Then a few days later bantamweights and flyweights tangle in Japan.
Before the 21st century, who would have thought we could watch fights from the Middle East and Asia live.
Who would have thought Americans would care.
Streaming has changed the boxing landscape.
Beterbiev (20-0, 20 KOs), the IBF, WBC, WBO light heavyweight titlist meets WBA titlist Bivol (23-0, 12 KOs) for the undisputed world championship on Saturday Oct. 12, at the Kingdom Arena in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia.
The entire card will air on DAZN pay-per-view. In the United States, the main event, expected to start at 3:15 pm PT, will also be available on ESPN+.
A few decades ago, only Europeans and Asians would care about this fight card. And only the most avid American fight fan would even notice. Times have changed dramatically for the worldwide boxing scene.
In the 1970s and 80s, ABC’s Wide World of Sports would occasionally televise boxing from other countries. Muhammad Ali was featured on that show many times. Also, Danny “Lil Red” Lopez, Salvador Sanchez and Larry Holmes.
Howard Cosell was usually the host of that show and then denounced the sport as too brutal after 15 rounds of a one-sided match between Holmes and Randall Cobb at the Astrodome in Houston, Texas in 1982.
That same Cobb would later go into acting and appear in films with Chuck Norris and others.
Streaming apps have brought international boxing to the forefront.
Until this century heavyweights and light heavyweight champions were dominated by American prizefighters. Not anymore.
Beterbiev, a Russian-born fighter now living in Canada, is 39 years old and has yet to hear the final bell ring in any of his pro fights. He sends all his opponents away hearing little birdies. He is a bruiser.
“I want a good fight. I’m preparing for a good fight. We’ll see,” said Beterbiev.
Bivol, 33, is originally from Kyrgyzstan and now lives in the desert town of Indio, Calif. He has never tasted defeat but unlike his foe, he vanquishes his opponents with a more technical approach. He does have some pop.
“Artur (Beterbiev) is a great champion. He has what I want. He has the belts. And it’s not only about belts. When I look at his skills, I want to check my skills also against this amazing fighter,” said Bivol.
The Riyadh fight card also features several other world titlists including Jai Opetaia, Chris Eubank Jr and female star Skye Nicolson.
Japan
Two days later, bantamweight slugger Junto Nakatani leads a fight card that includes flyweight and super flyweight world titlists.
Nakatani (28-0, 21 KOs), a three-division world titlist, defends the WBC bantamweight title against Thailand’s Tasana Salapat (76-1, 53 KOs) on Monday Oct. 14, at Ariake Arena in Tokyo. ESPN+ will stream the Teiken Promotions card.
The left-handed assassin Nakatani has a misleading appearance that might lead one to think he’s more suited for a tailor than a scrambler of brain cells.
A few years back I ran into Nakatani at the Maywood Boxing club in the Los Angeles area. I thought he was a journalist, not the feared pugilist who knocked out Angel Acosta and Andrew Moloney on American shores.
Nakatani is worth watching at 1 a.m. on ESPN+.
Others on the card include WBO super flyweight titlist Kosei Tanaka (20-1, 11 KOs) defending against Phumelele Cafu (10-0-3); and WBO fly titlist Anthony Olascuaga (7-1, 5 KOs) defending against Jonathan “Bomba” Gonzalez (28-3-1, 14 KOs) the WBO light fly titlist who is moving up in weight.
It’s a loaded fight card.
RIP Max Garcia
The boxing world lost Max Garcia one of Northern California’s best trainers and a longtime friend of mine. He passed away this week.
Garcia and his son Sam Garcia often traveled down to Southern California with their fighters ready to show off their advanced boxing skills time after time.
It was either the late 90s or early 2000s that I met Max in Big Bear Lake at one of the many boxing gyms there at that time. We would run into each other at fight cards in California or Nevada. He was always one of the classiest guys in the boxing business.
If Max had a fighter on a boxing card you knew it was trouble for the other guy. All of his fighters were prepared and had that extra something. He was one of the trainers in NorCal who started churning out elite fighters out of Salinas, Gilroy and other nearby places.
Recently, I spotted Max and his son on a televised card with another one of his fighters. I mentioned to my wife to watch the Northern California fighter because he was with the Garcias. Sure enough, he battered the other fighter and won handily.
Max, you will be missed by all.
Fights to Watch
(all times Pacific Time)
Sat. DAZN pay-per-view, 9 a.m. Beterbiev-Bivol full card. Beterbiev (20-0) vs Dmitry Bivol (23-0) main event only also available on ESPN+ (3:15 pm approx.)
Mon. ESPN+ 1 a.m. Junto Nakatani (28-0) vs Tasana Salapat (76-1).
Photo credit: Mikey Williams / Top Rank
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Reflections on Yoenli Hernandez and the New Wave of Outstanding Cuban Boxers
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Avila Perspective, Chap. 297: Callum Walsh in Dublin, Anthony Joshua and More
Avila Perspective, Chap. 300: Eastern Horizons — Bivol, Beterbiev and Japan
Avila Perspective, Chap. 298: Female World Title Fights and More
Avila Perspective, Chap. 299: Golden Boy in Saudi Arabia and More
Japan’s Budding Superstar Junto Nakatani KOs ‘Petch’ Chitpattana in Tokyo
Results and Recaps from Riyadh where Artur Beterbiev Unified the 175-Pound Title
Avila Perspective, Chap. 300: Eastern Horizons — Bivol, Beterbiev and Japan
Junto Nakatani’s Road to a Mega-fight plus Notes on the Best Boxers from Thailand
Bygone Days: Muhammad Ali at the Piano in the Lounge at the Tropicana
WBA Feather Champ Nick Ball Chops Down Rugged Ronny Rios in Liverpool
Alimkhanuly TKOs Mikhailovich and Motu TKOs O’Connell in Sydney
Avila Perspective, Chap. 299: Golden Boy in Saudi Arabia and More
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Terri Harper Wins Third Division World Title
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Esteemed Boxing Writer Nigel Collins Keeps on Punching (the keys on his keyboard)
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