In the decade of the 1960’s, professional boxing would undergo as much change and upheaval as it had in decades, with an eclectic array of heavyweight champions at the forefront, like Cassius Clay (later Muhammad Ali), Sonny Liston and Joe Frazier, but one boxer seemed to define the farewell of one era and the arrival of another: Floyd Patterson.
The youngest man to win the heavyweight title and later the first to regain an undisputed heavyweight crown, the genial, soft-spoken Patterson would forge a Hall-of-Fame career that included epic matches that ranged from Archie Moore to Ingemar Johansson and Liston, but like so many others his confrontations with Muhammad Ali would always be center stage. After arguably being the most admired and well-known heavyweight boxer in the country for nearly 10 years, Patterson would lose to Muhammad Ali in a TKO in the 12th round in Las Vegas in 1965.
The rivalry between the two had the added mixture of the always volatile combination of race and religion, with the older Patterson refusing to go along with the 1964 name change from Cassius Clay to Muhammad Ali, insisting instead to refer to the younger boxer as Clay. When Ali defeated Floyd Patterson in his second title defense in 1965 many sportswriters accused Ali of “carrying” Patterson so that he could physically punish him without knocking him out with Ali calling out “What’s my name?” to Patterson. From Ali, came a contemptuous rejoinder that branded Patterson as an Uncle Tom, an unsettling description at a time when many great urban cities of the Midwest and Northeast were experiencing increased levels of racial tension and unrest. The Ali/Patterson feud culminated when the two boxers would clash for the final time in Madison Square Garden in September of 1972.
These gloves are from that historic battle that ended with the aging Patterson losing in a TKO in the seventh round. What was not known at the time was that this would be the final chapter in Patterson’s marvelous career that included 55 wins and 8 losses and one draw, with 40 of the victories coming by knockout. The last pair of gloves used in battle against one of the great figures from boxing’s postwar heyday would seem to be a significant artifact as worthy as the man who wore them or the opponent who ducked from them (or tried to).
The burgundy Everlast gloves are in excellent condition and virtually problem free (no laces), each with a blazing black marker Angelo Dundee autograph at the top of each Everlast tag. The “Approved New York State Athletic Commission” stamping is on the inside of each, along with Dundee’s notation of “Patterson KO 9/20/72,” plus Dundee’s near-miss pre-fight prediction of the KO coming in the fourth round administered to the gloves interior before they were put on Ali’s hands.
A letter of authenticity signed by the late Angelo Dundee (on his personal letterhead) accompanies.