Free Come Out Smokin' by Phil Pepe Page B

Ellis, twenty-nine, had matured as a fighter relatively late in life. He had started his professional career back in 1961 and for the first four years he was a run-of-the-mill middleweight. When his tonsils were removed, he began to gain weight and grew into a light heavyweight, then a full-fledged heavyweight. It cannot be an accident that his rise up the fistic ladder coincided with a letter written to the respected, veteran fight trainer and manager, Angelo Dundee. Ellis’ career had reached its lowest ebb with three defeats in four fights in 1964. He was having managerial problems and was on the verge of giving up the game. As a last resort, he sat down and wrote a letter to Dundee, appealing to the little trainer-manager for help. At the bottom of the letter, Ellis wrote in huge letters: “H-E-L-P!”
    Dundee sent for Ellis and asked him to come on down to Miami Beach to train. He put Jimmy to work as a sparring partner for Muhammad Ali. For three years, Jimmy worked in the gym with Ali, boxing more than one thousand rounds with the heavyweight champ as he helped him prepare for all his important fights. If Ellis was helping Ali, working with Muhammad helped Ellis immeasurably. He learned a lot in those sessions. He learned moves he never knew existed and he applied them to his own style. Slowly, he made the transition from reckless puncher to smooth, polished, clever boxer.
    The work with Ali and the association with Dundee had an electrifying effect on Ellis’ career. Under Angelo’s shrewd training and management, Ellis had twelve fights and won them all, including the three that earned him the WBA’s crown.
    Ellis defended his title once, then an injury to his nose put him on the sidelines. Coming into the fight with Frazier, Jimmy had not been in the ring in seventeen months. For two years, Ellis’ people and Frazier’s backers had been steadily hurling threats, insults, and challenges at each other, each charging that the other was “ducking me, he’s afraid to fight me.” But everybody knew the match was inevitable and Madison Square Garden finally put it together.
    Frazier, now twenty-six, was an outstanding fighter almost from the time he put on gloves; good enough to win an Olympic championship and get financial backing from a syndicate of wealthy and experienced business men. It had taken Ellis eight years to accomplish what Frazier did in four—win a championship.
    In the ring, there was absolutely no similarity between them. In fact, you couldn’t find two fighters with such diametrically different styles. Ellis, adopting much of Ali’s technique, was a stand-up boxer who liked to jab and move and punch in classic combinations. He possessed a good, strong, sneaky right hand, which he had used since Dundee became his manager to knock out six opponents, all in the first round. Despite his punching ability, though, Ellis’ fundamental strategy was right out of the boxing book.
    Frazier, on the other hand, was more of a brawler and mauler, devoid of defense and finesse. He came right at you without letup. And once he hit you, you knew you were hit. There was power in those left hooks, explosive power. In Joe’s own words, he wasn’t much for fancy stuff. “I just come out smokin,’ ” he said frequently. And he promised to “come out smokin’ ” against Ellis.
    Ellis and Frazier both began their training in Miami Beach, but Joe became restless and unhappy in Florida. It was too hot there and he feared the heat would rob him of his strength. So he packed his gear and his entourage and went to his northern retreat at Lake Kiamesha. Joe was much more comfortable in New York and his training camp took on the usual air of good-fellowship. Joe boxed with his sparring partners—Charlie Polite and Ken Norton for heavy work, Ray Anderson and Moleman Williams for speed. Anderson and Williams were lighter men and they copied