Ken Norton Sr., Heavyweight Fighter Who Beat Ali, Dies...Ken Norton, former heavyweight champion who beat Muhammad Ali

Although he never actually won a world heavyweight championship fight, Norton carved out a World Boxing Hall of Fame career as a foe who tormented Ali with his rugged style, winning the first of their three fights by breaking Ali's jaw in the 11th round on March 31, 1973 and then losing two subsequent controversial decisions.  He had four prominent fights in New York, including wins over Jerry Quarry and Duane Bobick at Madison Square Garden, his third fight against Ali on Sept. 28, 1976 at Yankee Stadium and the final fight of his career on May 11, 1981 at the Garden, when he was stopped by Long Island heavyweight Gerry Cooney in just 54 seconds of the first round.

Ken Norton Sr., the heavyweight fighter who pulled off one of the greatest upsets in boxing history when he beat Muhammad Ali in 1973, has died, the AP, The Los Angeles Times and Reuters are reporting.

Norton's professional career started in 1967, but it was in 1973 when he got a chance at greatness. A relative unknown took on the legendary Ali for 12 rounds and won, breaking Ali's jaw along the way.

1973 Fight

http://www.cnn.com/2013/09/18/us/ken-norton-dies/

A lot of fans believe the 1970s was the peak, the golden era, of heavyweight boxing and you were a big part of that. How do you compare the ‘70s to other eras?

Ken Norton: In Joe Louis’s day they were slow and they trotted around. In our era, Ali was a boxer, man, very quick. And now a days, fighters are bigger and stronger, but in my opinion the fighters in our era, in the 70s, were the greatest group of fighters ever assembled.

 Ken Norton, the former heavyweight champ who fought the all-time great likes of Muhammad Ali (three times, officially going 1-2 in closely contested distance bouts but winning all three bouts in the eyes of many observers), Larry Holmes and George Foreman; as well as many top contenders of the 1970s, such as Jerry Quarry, Duane Bobick, Jimmy Young, Earnie Shavers and Scott LeDoux. Norton was inducted into the International Boxing Hall of Fame in 1992.

Who hits harder, George Foreman or Earnie Shavers?

Norton: That’s a good question, they both hit hard. When I was hit by those guys I didn’t have a monitor in my butt so I can‘t really tell you exactly, but they both punch well.

Do you think you left the best of Kenny Norton in the ring against Larry Holmes? It was your last great ring performance.

Norton: I think so, yes. The third fight with Ali, I trained hard. After that loss, which I don’t think I truly lost, with the exception of the Larry Holmes fight I didn’t train anymore the way I should’ve. My last two or three fights I didn’t train. But for the Larry Holmes fight I trained like a madman and I don’t think that Larry actually beat me. I think it was a very close fight and that I won by at least a split decision. Being the champion you don’t lose those kinds of fights. In my head I lost because Larry was promoted by Don King.

Norton finished with a record of 42-7-1 and 33 knockouts. Norton told USA TODAY Sports in 2010 he didn't fear Ali and hired a hypnotist to help him deal with Ali's trash-talking. "I felt I was as smart has he was and I was more physical," Norton said. "My manager thought a hypnotist would be a good thing. It gave me more of a positive feeling."

His second fight against Ali in Sept. 1976 was billed as "The Revenge: Battle of Broken
Jaw." Ali was quoted as saying, "I took a nobody and created a monster and now I have to punish him bad."

He beat Norton, but just narrowly, winning a split decision. They fought a third time at Yankee Stadium three years later, and Ali won again by split decision. Norton always believed he won that fight.

Born in Jacksonville, Ill. on Aug. 9, 1943, Norton attended Northeast Missouri State University (now Truman State) on a football scholarship, but was plagued by shoulder injuries, and joined the Marine Corps, where he started boxing. Despite having a sculpted body, Norton said he never lifted weights.

One of his sons, Ken Norton Jr., a coach with the Seattle Seahawks: played for the Dallas Cowboys and San Francisco 49ers in the NFL and now coaches for the Seattle Seahawks.