FRAZIER, JOE

born Jan. 12, 1944, Beaufort, S.C., U.S. Joe Frazier (left) throwing a punch at Hans Huber of Germany as he captures the gold medal in byname of Joseph Frazier American world heavyweight boxing champion from Feb. 16, 1970, when he knocked out Jimmy Ellis in five rounds in New York City, until Jan. 22, 1973, when he was beaten by George Foreman at Kingston, Jam. After winning the 1964 Olympic Games heavyweight gold medal in Tokyo, Frazier, a resident of Philadelphia, began his professional career in August 1965. In 1967 Muhammad Ali lost universal recognition as champion because he had refused to submit to U.S. military conscription. On March 4, 1968, in a title bout sanctioned by the New York State Athletic Commission and similar bodies in other states, Frazier knocked out Buster Mathis in 11 rounds. The following month, Ellis won a championship tournament (in which Frazier declined to participate) approved by the World Boxing Association. Frazier successfully defended his New York title four times before defeating Ellis. On March 8, 1971, Frazier scored a 15-round decision over former champion Ali. Including this triumph, Frazier had, until his defeat by Foreman, won all 27 of his professional bouts, 23 by knockout. He retired in 1976 but staged an unsuccessful comeback attempt in 1981. A chunky man (5 feet 11 inches, 205 pounds) with an aggressive style and a powerful left hook, he was likened to an earlier heavyweight champion, Rocky Marciano.