Yesterday marked the 50th anniversary of Ali-Liston II, a fight that became iconic due to the sweet photo of Ali yelling at a flattened Liston to get off the canvas. That photo went on to become a thing of boxing folklore - and the circumstances surrounding the knockout only added to the intrigue. In fact, the fight is often referred to as "The Phantom Punch" as Ali would later describe it himself.
To mark '50 Years Later,' ESPN has posted an Associated Press article recapping the story of the fight, along with the video of the first and only round. In the video you'll see Ali catch Liston with a pull counter that doesn't appear to be all too devastating, but Liston collapses in a heap nonetheless and rolls around the mat until he eventually gets up and the fight is waved off. A large number of people who watched the bout live in person, on TV at the time -- and even still today -- claim that the fix was in and that Liston took a dive because of his alleged mob ties. Whatever is really the case, one thing is for certain - it sure made for the sport's greatest photo op.
So with all these years removed, and irregardless of whether or not you were alive at the time, do you remember that knockout as an iconic moment in boxing, as a fugazy, or perhaps both?