Jersey Joe Walcott was an inept referee. He lost control of the action. Remember Liston did not finish that fight laying on his back. He got up and was actually fighting back. He did not beat the count which caused the fight to be stopped. The ending of the first fight was also mysterious the big bad Liston quitting because of a shoulder injury. He gave up the most prestigious crown in sports. The rumors were that the Muslims were going to kill Liston. The mob ordered Liston to take a dive etc. The real question is did that punch from a not so great puncher Ali landed to fell the mighty Liston. I also recall that this fight which happened on May 25 1965 was suppose to happen at the beginning of the year but Ali had emergency surgery due to an appendix condition and the contest was delayed. Liston at that time was hungry for revenge motivated and ready.When the cancellation happened he just did not care. Liston never obtained his mystique or reputation after the 2 fights with Ali. If Ali did not exist he may have been champ for many years to come. His birth was a mystery no one knew how old he really was and his death was also a mystery no one knew when exactly he died or how exactly he died. You take his life the in between and you have the makings of a major motion picture or a great documentary.

I am not absolutely certain, because there has been so much information after the fact, and it is hard to sort out fact from fiction.

Liston was an incredible fighter, and if he were alive today, there is no one in the heavyweight division that could touch him. However, Ali was the fastest heavyweight of all time, and may have been the best of the lot. He is certainly in the top 5. So, at his prime, beating Liston is no surprise.

The surprise was that Liston did not seem to put everything into the fights, especially the second one. But the "phantom punch" was a temple shot, and it was very quick. Whether Liston should have gotten up, who knows? But it was a legitimate punch.

Liston was hit with the choppy right hand and it landed on the left cheek area, not on the chin. Once down, clay/Ali stood over him refusing to go to a neutral corner and Jersey "Joe" Walcott, the guest referee lost all control at that point. Seconds went by and finally, now get this Nat Fliescher, the editor of Ring magazine, not even an assigned official, but seated neat the timekeeper, yelled to Walcott that the fight was over. IMO, in today's setting, Ali would be disqualified for not going to a neutral corner, the count wouldn't start till he had(just like the long count between Dempsey and Tunney) and Then Liston might have gotten up. Some feel he had been approached by Muslim henchmen and threatened to take dive, while others say he didn't try to get up with Ali standing over him .I feel the former was the case. He took the dive regardless fearing the MUSLIMS.

First of all, there was indeed a punch. Many claimed that Ali didn't even punch Liston, because the punch was too fast too see by eyesight for many spectators. In slow-motion film recordings of the fight you can see the punch. The problem is that Liston's chin was out of iron. He took the best shots from Cleveland Williams right in his face and George Foreman said in an interview that even an old Williams in sparring sessions (which Foreman had with Williams) hit just as hard as a prime Ron Lyle or an older Gerry Cooney, who are rated right up there with Big George when it comes to punching power. Plus Liston could still fight as Williams broke his jaw, which shows how tough Liston was. On the other hand Ali was never famous for being a hard hitter and for sure not a one-punch KO artist. Those facts together with Liston's criminal background (he faked many fights for the mafia to wash money with the outcomes of the fights), make it very likely that the Phantom Punch was indeed fake. What makes the argument of a fake even stronger is that Ali himself looked at the punch as a fake punch, shouting at Liston, who was on the ground, to stand up, in anger and refusing to go to his corner.

The mystery behind it was just as mysterious as Liston himself. That phantom punch was well heard around the world. Big George sparred Big Bear Liston and Foreman said Sonny was one tough fella he couldn't get backpedaling. I just cant see Ali hurting Liston. More so, knock him out. Most explained Physics played its part. Well, that punch might leave Sonny groggy but not senseless.

Ali - Liston 2, rigged or not?

Liston literally took the dive (well he dived, didnt he? Lol ). But Ali had no idea just what is goin on. He's just as surprised as everyone

Was it a visit from NOI members to Liston's camp, was it the rescheduling of the match and Liston losing his training edge, was it a payday that was reduced to nearly nothing from an ongoing "mob tax" or was Liston psyched out by the Ali mind games? I lean on Liston being angry about the "mob tax" and he wanted to make a point that he was not going to continue being a payday for a pack of wise guys; Liston seemed to pattern the "fall" from Jack Johnson v Willard in Cuba -- http://boxrec.com/media/index.php/Muhamm...

Not rigged but Liston might, just might, have taken a dive. The anchor punch was legit. Liston walked through it and he got knocked down for sure. But it wasn't that powerful to put him down for the count. He could've gotten up for sure but he stayed down. In one interview, he said he purposely stayed down because he thought Ali, who was prancing around the ring taunting him, snapped, and Sonny was scared of insane people. Before the fight, Liston also said he was worried the Black Muslims might assassinate him in the ring. But hey, we will never know for sure because all the guys involved, including Sonny's cornermen are all dead.

It's pretty obvious Liston just didn't want to deal with Ali and took a fall.

watching it I did not see the punch, and they interviewed Joe Louis who was ring side, he said the punch did not have any power on it and could not have hurt Liston. Liston said he lost his balance when he tried to stand up. Liston had been involved in crime so he was always suspect in everything he did.

We will never know the truth.

It wasn't rigged in a since that they both new it would happen. The problem started when the black Muslims where scaring the hell out of listen.so the first good shot he took he went down. Firmly believe Ali didn't know until it happened

The famous picture ever i think of Ali is his picture with Liston down the canvass. But then again, was the punch legit or not? Did Ali really hurt Liston to end that fight or did Liston take a dive?

Any thoughts?

No. At that time, the saying that speed kills was still greek to most boxing fans and experts alike though the then fast growing martial arts of Japanese karate and Chinese kung fu accentuated on speed of delivery than the weight of the blow to dispatch the adversary. Ali simply put the science and technique into practice in scoring one of the quickest, debilitating knockouts in boxing history. What is seen by the eye is usually more apparent than real. That so-called phantom overhead punch was more ponderous and impactful than it seemed to casual fans.

Both rigged, like a few other boxing fights. Mostly to make a name. See Ali sparring n you can tell he's the real thing though.

@Billboxing, people are highly suspicious the fight was staged. But it was not proven. Did Ali allowed it, didn't he joined and publicly announced he joined Black Muslims?