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Stung like a bee

Tyson Fury, Anthony Joshua and Usyk wouldn’t have stood a chance against Muhammad Ali, says ‘The Greatest’s’ biographer

MUHAMMAD ALI would have beaten modern heavyweight greats including Tyson Fury and Anthony Joshua, his biographer has claimed.

Thomas Hauser says the legandary fighter would wipe the floor with all of the current era's heavyweight champs.

Muhammad Ali as a 20 year old boxer
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Muhammad Ali as a 20 year old boxerCredit: Getty - Contributor
Tyson Fury during his fight against Deontay Wilder
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Tyson Fury during his fight against Deontay WilderCredit: AP
Usyk (R) won the last match against Joshua (L) but must now win the rematch to retain the belts
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Usyk (R) won the last match against Joshua (L) but must now win the rematch to retain the beltsCredit: PA

In fact, Hauser, author of Ali's biography 'The Greatest', reckons Ali could beat any heavyweight from any era.

He told : "If you were able to match all the great heavyweights in history against each other in a round-robin tournament, then Ali would have won when it was all over.

"Today's heavyweights would be problematic for many people — like Rocky Marciano, who fought at 186-pounds, and Jack Dempsey, who fought at 188-pounds.

"They could not have been competitive with today's heavyweights."

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Many of today's heavyweights are colossal fighters.

WBC and The Ring belt holder Fury stands at 6ft 9" and weighs 264lb, or nearly 19st, while Oleksandr Usyk - holder of the WBA, IBF, WBO and IBO titles - stands at 6ft 3" but is relatively small for the current dynamic in the division.

Other top fighters such as Joshua and Deontay Wilder stand between 6ft 6" and 6ft 7".

Ali, who will always be known as The Greatest, stood at 6ft 3" and would have easily been able to hold his own today, according to Hauser.

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He added: "Ali was obviously much bigger, and he was so fast that I would have picked him over any heavyweight fighting today."

The three-time heavyweight champion retired with a record of 56 wins (37 KOs) and five losses, and is responsible for some of the most thrilling fights in boxing history.

Ali aged 74.

Ali taunts Sonny Liston during their 1965 heavyweight title fight
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Ali taunts Sonny Liston during their 1965 heavyweight title fightCredit: AP:Associated Press
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