Cassius Clay vs. Sonny Banks

Cassius Clay (soon Muhammad Ali) fought Sonny Banks in a ten-round boxing match at Madison Square Garden in New York City on February 10, 1962. Clay won the fight through a technical knockout when the referee stopped the fight in the fourth round. The event is remembered for being the first professional boxing match in which Ali was officially knocked down in the ring by his boxing opponent.^{[1][2][3][4][5][6][7][8][9][10][note 1]}

Notes

1. Although it has gone down as a knockdown in the records, some commentators opine that Ali had slipped on water splashed in a corner during this fight.^[11]

References

1. "Muhammad Ali's ring record". ESPN. 19 November 2003. Retrieved 6 October 2016.
2. Thomas Hauser (1991). Muhammad Ali: His Life and Times. Simon & Schuster. pp. 43–6.
3. Felix Dennis and Don Atyeo (2003). Muhammad Ali: The Glory Years. miramax books. p. 62.
4. David Remnick (1998). King of the World. Random House. p. 121.
5. "Mississippi's Sonny Banks was the first pro boxer to knock down Muhammad Ali". Sun Herald. 7 July 2016. Retrieved 7 October 2016.
6. "The Muhammad Ali I knew: A tribute by the late Bill Gallo". Daily News. 5 June 2016. Retrieved 7 October 2016.
7. "Clay Arrives In Town, Speaks Of Many Things". Sumter Daily Item. 5 February 1962. Retrieved 7 October 2016.
8. "Clay Predicts Early Knockout". Toledo Blade. 10 February 1962. Retrieved 7 October 2016.
9. "Cocky Clay finds Banks Tough Foe". The Spokesman Review. 12 February 1962. Retrieved 7 October 2016.
10. Ferdie Pacheco (2003). A View from the Corner. Birch Lane Press. pp. 61–4.
11. Stephen Brunt (2002). Facing Ali. The Lyons Press. p. 223.