Читать книгу Ali vs. Inoki. The Forgotten Fight That Inspired Mixed Martial Arts and Launched Sports Entertainment онлайн

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I am telling this story because on New Year’s Eve Mr. Inoki had a tradition where people would get up in the ring and he would slap them across the face with a “good luck slap” that was meant to transfer some of his energy to you. It was amazing how many people would line up. Stupid me, I was one of them, and man did he slap me—hard! That’s why I am telling this “beer story”—it’s my payback!

So this book is about a striker versus a submission artist, both at the top level of their respective fields. Ali connects with a punch, the fight is over; when he doesn’t connect and Inoki gets ahold of him, the fight is over—no room for mistakes on either side.

In the end, I think the fight between Ali and Inoki was an important one for the history books. Ali took a huge risk, because nowadays when a boxer says he’s the best fighter in the world, I always say, “You’re not. You are the best ‘boxer’ in the world.” The best fighter is good everywhere the fight goes, standing or on the ground, so if Ali would have missed a punch and Inoki would get him on the ground, that would have been big trouble.