Larry Holmes vs Ken Norton - Round 15

[mattan147]

Unbelievable fight - how could you separate these guys?

[tlig]

@mattan147 By standing between them like Mills Lane did and pushing them apart?

[tlig]

These guys are the size of today's light heavys.

[tlig]

Excellent vid quality.

[codsack56]

I remember this fight so well!!! I was yelling my ass off in front of the tube.This is what boxing is all about...two warriors!

[fenderbassfan]

That was when boxing was legit. Sure Norton and Young might have beaten Ali, but at least it wasn't the obvious decision made only for a rematch like De La Hoya/ Mosley or Holyfield/Lewis.

[ChujCiWJedzenie]

this what boxing is about - chasing the dreams, giving all you can give

[Saskobest]

one of the best rounds ever for sure.

[PeanDaBoxer2]

My mistake dark blue suit on

[PeanDaBoxer2]

Did anyone see Styvester Stallone front row? Light blue suit

[neneshubby]

One of the most underrated great rounds in heavyweight history. I still remember this fight on TV when you actually saw heavyweight fights on free TV and the Heavyweight title actually still meant something.

[KeitaThe1]

@neneshubby That was the greatest round I ever saw! What could be any better?

[davelou1995]

What a round and what a fight this was. This fight clearly means so much to the both of them - unbelieveable! You're right 4JayeP, we'll never see fights like this again.

[kyzersoze74]

Checy Chase, Frank Zappa & Stallone in the background? what a combo... :P

[VettetheVixen]

Look at Stallone and Duran at ringside, they are so into the action!

[theboxinghistorian]

sintulating round, both just duked it out centre ring, beautifull stuff.

[roscoegino]

Had it not been for that last twenty second flurry, Holmes would've lost. Amazing. Best 15th round ever.

[roscoegino]

@strictlycomments Yeah, certainly not the first time Norton got screwed. But it's really how u finish. Boxers like Ali proved that.

[strictlycomments]

@roscoegino It's not really supposed to be like that in the pros, but it was. I fought in the amateurs & remember my trainer always telling us to finish the round strong, with a flurry, to make an impression on the judges. It was true, but it's not the way fights are supposed to be judged in the pros. Same as punches; in the pros it's supposed to be the effectiveness of the punch, as opposed to the volume of the punches. A knockdown (punch) scores higher than a volume of punches...as it should

[4JayeP]

I would consider this the last great fight of the Golden Age of the Heavyweights. This last round pretty much sums up the heavyweight division in the 70's. I remember seeing this fight on TV. I'm more impressed by it now. Two guys, no technique. Just a burning desire to win, willing to stand in the middle of the ring and trade punches that would kill most of us. By far the greatest 15th round in boxing history.

[torr59622]

If fights were 15 now, believe me there would be more classics. You would never be able to coast if your up after round 9.

[1banryukyu]

@zendo59 Sir

Great fight!!! Was the ref Judge Mills Lane? Thanks for posting this fight.

[TheLuscious]

The greatest 15th round ever period. That round was better than Round 1 of Hagler-Hearns. Nobody can swear to me on Bibles who won that round. It was that close. Easily one of the 10 best rounds in boxing history. This was when boxers had the warrior mentality.

[torr59622]

@TheLuscious Agreed a brilliant fight and a brilliant round.

[markdemoridotcom]

amazing stamina heart and determination by both

[Boon1333]

chins of steel... 1 of them punches would put most ppl on there ass

[MegaYouri13]

Did anyone else see Cheech Marin and Chevy Chase in the crowd at 2:35 to 2:45? LOL....btw: the women in the background "Marking out" was AWESOME!!! lol...

[sac2la]

The greatest 15th round ever in my opinion! What a fight it was!

[Pihasanddunes1]

Magnificent fight. Boxing at its finest.

[neneshubby]

Hard to believe it now but Heavyweights used to be actual athletes who threw punches. Not the plodding hulks who can barely move like we have today. Once the Tyson, Holyfield, Lewis, Bowe era ended so did Heavyweight boxing as we know it.

[funktron4]

Holmes won the fight cleanly. No way should Norton have been considered for a decision. He was a paper champion----and quite frankly, Jimmy Young should have been the champion as he clearly outpointed Norton in that fight that eventually led to the WBC naming Norton the champ (ridiculous). In any event, Holmes landed dozens more punches than Norton. People always seem to give Norton credit for his wild, amateur-like swings and misses.

[gotch09]

Wasn't it Kenny that broke Ali's jaw?

[counterstriving]

@gotch09 Yes, in their first fight.

[pfantasy]

I was in the 8th grade watching it on free TV, I'm 45yrsold and I still can't BREATHE when I'm watching this. I had it a draw back then and still now. They should not have taken NORTONS TITLE it was waaaaaay to close. And' besides NORTON DOMINATED well over 2mins. of that last round in a FIGHT THAT CLOSE. BTW' ALI never beat NORTON in 3fights. NORTON, HOLMES, FRAZIER, FOREMAN, ALI. Thank you all for the MEMORIES!!!!!!!!

[rsanchez140]

To me it was the best heavyweight fight that I seen...

I just can't believe it's been 33 years since that fight....Time is going by to fast.

[sashe44]

If you look carefully at the ringside audience towards the end of the round, you can see Sylvester Stallone (he's wearing a cheesy 70's leisure suit) watching the fight intently while standing. I think he wanted to get in there and trade some blow. Certainly this round resembled the 15th of Rocky - Apollo more than any other fight I have seen.

[DrNDJas]

Back when the heavyweight division was full of real fighters, boxing at its best. Pure sport-man vs. man. Incredible.

[barkingbasher]

Wow



[tejanochris]

I agree that Norton should have won that fight. I saw that fight and still see it over and over again. As a former boxer, I know how painful those shots can be and in this fight they were coming in buckets. This fight will stand as one of the greatest that people have ever seen.

[ioanonissimo]

to beat and knock kenny you had to have strenght and power like george foreman,

and larry holmes was pretty strong back then.

[roquey44]

Wow! As good as it was when I saw it 33 years ago. Norton clearly won the first 2;30 seconds of that round. But give Holmes credit. He showed his greatness by winning the last :30. I thought Norton won it then and still think that way. IMO, the last great heavyweight round of the modern era.

[michaelkan1]

@roquey44 no the last really great heavyweight fight was Holmes Cooney. After that it all starrted to go downhill.

[tralfazruk1]

One of the forgotten classics.Post Peak Ali era.The best overall collection of quality heavy weights was the middle to late 70s.Holmes at this timewas a Don King stooge.Then Holmes later made the Marciano copuldn't carry his jockstrap and the guido powers in boxing screwed him against Micheal Spinks

[maxter08]

@Trexty4 : Norton was actually supposed to play him in the film, but it didn't work out for some reason

[jx14aby]

Just from the 15 round, got to give the edge to Holmes. I think it went down to the last thirty seconds.

[MrOlie0]

I think that this fight and the other between Hearns and Hagler are certainly two of the best fight during the last 50 years

[SCAHILL666]

Ken Norton most underrated fighter ever imo.

[Galactus247]

Classic fight. The 15th round was a fight all by itself.....

[EMCEMITCH]

this was a great 15th round and great fight---however the commentary was so pro-holmes it got me irritated---larry has to do this, larry has to do that ---it was biased and unfair----and im not a particular fan of norton

[michaelkan1]

@EMCEMITCH I forget his name now but the same guy still commentates on ESPN he was doing the Pacquiao margarito fight with Mario Lopez.

[celphtitled79]

@michaelkan1 BOB SHERIDAN

[D2Kprime]

@celphtitled79 : Col Bob Sheridan owns.

[michaelkan1]

@celphtitled79 thats him, I like him. But my favourite is gil clancy

[imamfollower]

if i say holmes won this fight

 id be lying

[TheBoxingFan360]

I thought Norton won this fight

[jjrr64]

I was 13 yrs old when this fights happen my dad said to me some day we will not longer see tthese kind of fights endurance sportsmanship ever,,my dad was right we dont see these fights anymore thanks for that good memories thanks for this video

[agim826]

Fuckn love it. Thats what champions are about

[tftmc]

Look at Chevy Chase & Sylvester Stallone going nuts in the background the last 1m of the fight.

It's most definitely them, and what a hell of a 15th round.

[littlewar1000]

The real rocky scenario!!!!

[RaiderRazor7]

Never was and never will be much of a Larry Holmes or Kenny Norton fan...but it just doesn't get any better than this. Perhaps (arguably) the greatest fight I have ever seen in in over 30 years of watching boxing. Definitely the best 15th round of a Heavyweight Championship fight I've ever seen.

[403766]

@RaiderRazor7

This was an aweosme fight but come on there are better.

[zk92000]

@403766 , your missing the point. As far as in the HEAVYWEIGHT class this is one of the most amazing fights of all time. Because you just don't see heavyweights with that kinda endurance. Smaller fighters YES, but not heavyweights, and keep in mind this was a 15 round fight, NOT 12 rounds. For the 15th round and these 2 BIG men still have that much endurance, is stunning.

[scotthovsepian88]

Fans are on their feet going crazy. I spot Chevy Chase, Stallone and Roberto Duran in the second row.

[hdmf]

Why does the announcer say "it's a big round for Kenny Norton I'm afraid'. Did he want Holmes to win?

[cocodrilo33321]

the best 15 round ever. and maybe the best fight too!

[TommyGun7111]

hell of a round. Both guys showed they were warriors here.

[Jogame47]

that is awesme. 2 badass's right there

[Elreypachuco]

WOOF! There ain't gonna be no rematch =p ...hahaha

[bigmace1000]

A young Ali would have knocked out Larry Holmes no problem at all...

[madmax8903]

Tremendous round. I believe it was 1978.Can't see the Klitschkos or any beast from the east showing this heart, this speed in round two, never mind round 15. Great, but sad, in that it shows what we've lost (I think forever) in heavyweight boxing.

[truculantmuse]

I remember it like it was yesterday. In my youth, I always pulled for the boxer (Ali, Holmes, Leonard)...now, I prefer the slugger. Manny is the man!

[jaybird321]

Two monster bad asses taking it to each other. I fully expected that Norton was going to win this fight, but I didn't realize how good Holmes was.

[MRFUNKYBASSLINE]

People talk about Tommy Hearns and Mavelous Hagler having fought the best round in boxing history, this last round in this fight is right up there with that one.

Classic round by two of the all time greats. I see why I can't even watch boxing today, the spirit of it is missing.

[berezin99]

This announcer was so biased for Larry Holmes.

Lemme guess.

This was a Don King production, and Holmes was a Don King boy.

[moonboy320]

@berezin99 No doubt! I was just watchin this thinking the same thing. I remember watching this fight when I was a kid. I thought and still believe Norton won this fight. Listen to the part where the announcer (forget who it was) says, "this is a big round for Kenny Norton I'm afraid". At 2:27.

[flapperhead]

yep i remember getting home late from work and catching it on regular tv.. a great fight , one of the best ..the fights in those days were much better than the ppv of today

[CptBoomstick]

Heavyweight boxing is dead? WHAT?!! Chris Arreola and company would dominate Larry, Ken and all the greats of the 50's,60's, and 70's....joking.

[roquey44]

I said it 30 years ago and I say it now, Norton won that last round and won that fight. Great fight though. So underrated as one of the great ones. IMO, the problem with the heavyweights is that they are just too big today. Ali, Holmes, and Norton were all around 215-225. That's big enough to be strong, but still have speed. I like Lennox Lewis, but he ushered in athe era of the SuperHeavyweight. I thought "Iron Mike" Tyson had great size, but got to big as he aged.

[Gtwo13]

one of the BEST fights & BEST rounds in boxing HISTORY!!! there are NO heavyweights now today, boxing is dying... haha, Ken has a BIG & Strong upper body, but small legs

[jamiealex81]

great round could you put the rest of the fight on ? other versions arnt as gud quality. cheers

[arkansoul]

@jamiealex81 I would pay just to watch this rerun! This was the best fight I have ever seen. I was just a kid when they fought, but I saw it!!!

[TommyGun7111]

damn! probably one of the best 15th round of all time.

[skorpyonayts1169]

Norton was taking bombs and he wouldn't go down. Darn! too bad the good 'ole days of the heavyweight division has past. These days its worthless!

[lee1990lee]

pure heart to stay on there feet here both tired but soldier it

[neneshubby]

This was a classic case of One guy (Norton) winning the first 2:30 minutes of the round and the other guy (Holmes) winning the last 30 seconds and pulling out the round. Sometimes judges remember the last thing they saw. Roberto Duran was a master at fighting at the end of a round and pulling it out.

[maxhansendk]

Ken Norton looks to be on roids.

Typical high strength pumped up on roids. Good the real boxer (Holmes) won convincingly.

[rickman125]

Afraid they did. The 70's was Arnolds big day in body building where he admitted doing steroids. I use to work out in several gyms in the late 70's and early 80's where steroids were common place.

[FijneWIET]

@rediculousnicholas you need to get your facts right

[Ariamaluum]

He never lifted a weight until his car accident from 1986. Those were all ground exercise muscles.

[MrWrjs]

would ken norton beat lennox lewis?

[Midnightrambler3760]

It depends which Lennox Lewis.

Lewis came in undertrained for many fights, but when he came in prepared he was unbeatable.

[hardcorehouse]

I remember watching this live on TV in NYC on a warm summer night. Warfare at it's best. I think if Norton had fought as hard in the 15th against Ali at Yankee Stadium he'd have won the fight so clearly that they'd have had to give it to him.

[gbcon50]

Dois grandes gladiadores modernos, grande final trocarão golpes até o 15 round , última grande luta de peso pesados de uma geração que acabou e não volta mais. Holmes mais velho fantastico em momentos jabeando lembra o mestre Ali de quem foi sparring e assimilou o conteúdo. Não se ve mais lutas assim o boxe não tem mais talentos lutando .

[BringerOfTheTruth]

Holy Cow is that Stallone and Chevi Chase at 2:41 ?

[theecoteam]

HAHAHAHA OMG I think it is. Lmao, nice eyes.

[GBeret83]

Arguably the greatest single round in heavyweight boxing history.

[iitachifries]

The endurance those guys had back in the day compared to ufc fighter is unbelievable.

[bagzie]

If the decision of this fight hinged on the final round then Norton got robbed. There's no way Holmes won that last round - he rallied at the end but Norton was landing all the blows for 2 minutes.

[infiltrat3]

When i watch this round, I go into a trance.

That's the echelon.

You see little guys do that.

Look at the heavy shots these big men are taking.

[odyzzeus]

Amazing round !!

And a VERY CLOSE round, it could have been awarded to either man legitimately, or scored a draw.

[Mp25DIII]

Incredible round--the 70's was a glorious time in heavyweight history. Two warriors in the middle fighting on guts. Now all we have are two 6'8 Russians poking jabs into the faces of whatever flabby tatooed "#1 contender" they throw in front of them.

[oeyesea]

You most not be familiar with Gerrie Coetzee, Greg Page, Michael Dokes etc. Not every heavyweight fight back then was comparable to the last round of this fight. That era had plenty of stinkers too.

[Mp25DIII]

???--I would hardly qualify those guys as "stinkers", all three would be top contenders today just as they were back in their prime. Holmes dropped one of his belts to avoid fighting Page, and Holyfield-Dokes was one of the best heavyweight fights of the decade

[AKAKArnott]

I'd go a bit further - The 3 guys above plus Tim Witherspoon, Mike Weaver and John Tate would all have beaten Klitch easily . His last few defences have been the worst chmpionship fights I have ever seen in any division.

What is truly depressing is that Klitch genuinely is the best HW out there t the moment..

[NeonLeon78]

The all names you mentioned here were from the '80s heavyweight scene.

[neneshubby]

Watched this fight on t v when i was a kid. Hard to believe now that heavyweight title fights used to come on free t v.

[michaelkan1]

@neneshubby i remember it well on world of sport. Still dont know who won it. Also watched both the Holmes Spinks fights. I think Larry won em both,

[sportshistorybuff]

I used to root for Norton, but would learn later that he had a reputation of being arrogant. In his own autobiography, he admitted that being an only child he was spoiled, actually got angry at one of his cornermen for talking to Quarry (who he knew) at the weigh-in before 1975 fight. In his autobiography, Holmes described Norton as "Mr. Ken my s___ smells better than yours Norton," further accusing Norton of being a jerk, as you describe below.

[oranger2525]

two of the biggest jerks in heavyweight history put on one of the best fights ever.

go figure.

[Boxer2333333333333]

They're both nice guys.

[oranger2525]

they both stike me as whiners.

norton never earned the championship in the ring. one of the belts was given to him when Leon S. wanted to give Ali a rematch. This fight was norton's first "defense" of his "championship."

and Holmes always seemed to have a chip on his shoulder. I don't get enough respect, etc. and he practically cried when he lost to M Spinks.

[Boxer2333333333333]

Larry is completely different away from the media, anyone who has met him will tell you that. Who takes their first defeat well, especially when you see the media rubbing it in, and Marciano's brother flat telling you he is happy you lost and will party about it? Nobody, what Larry said wasn't right, but it's not like he said it out of the blue, the media was egging him on the whole time and acted like they did nothing to provoke him.

[oranger2525]

point taken.

and he (imho) was the best active heavyweight from the late 70s to mid 80s.

[Ariamaluum]

It was kind of Clubber Lang in Rocky III.

[hughmillen2]

The last minute and a half of this round is as close to a Rocky movie scene as real fights ever get.

[cortheboar]

People like you are the worst. Just because you read a great call by someone (simmons) doesn't mean you should try to act like your a sports writer and pass it off as your own observation/opinion. What you do is no different then plagiarism but you are only doing it for acceptance not a good grade.

[hughmillen2]

It is true I came here from the article actually. But look closer and you will see it is not a copy and paste job but a paraphrasing of his observation. I should brush up on my youtube standard protocol before commenting again I suppose. Right after I send Simmons his apology. Thanks for using this as a teachable moment for all of us. I will let you get back to flagging ads on craigslist.

[only1monk]

Being an Easton native I can tell you that the city went absolutely ape shit when the announcer said.."..winner and NEEEWW Heavyweight Cahmpion of the WOOOrld..." Me and my dad (I was 7) ran out into the street, and the houses just started to empty one by one on my block. My pops and Larry were good friends. So, to see my dad so proud was one of those crystal clear HD memories. Thanx for posting this, defintely a goosebump moment.

[enorjusten]

do know why there was such great fights back then and there isnt any in the heavies now its because they had that working class hunger the guys now arn't hungry thats why they turn up fat and give a shit fight because they just couldn't give a shit

[Boxinglad123]

boxing was big back then

[enorjusten]

it was big because the guy's were hungry thats why boxing was big back then because the guys wanted to prove who was the best at all cost. The guys now just want a paycheck

[Boxinglad123]

yep true, very true and the competition was grea, we shall one day see another great era

[enorjusten]

i hope so im starting to get worried there isnt any one out there with real special talent every era has a great heavywieght 60's ali 70's holmes 80's tyson 90's lewis 2000' who know's

[counterstriving]

@enorjusten and the paychecks have to be huge in order for them to bother at all.

[dhuang8]

those were some absolute bombs that were landed. this is what heavy weight boxing should be.

[wrappindude]

Larry Holmes was a very under-rated fighter.Excellent jab and very tenacious

[AKAKArnott]

To any youngsters watching, please note;

I know it looks nothing like this today but this is what heavyweight title boxing between world class, skilled and durable fighters is supposed to look like.

Both fighters deserve a huge amount of credit for this fight

[vidnut67]

@AKAKArnott Amen. Sadly, the decline is not just limited to boxing. I question the work ethic these days; it is worse than before. Too many people, even if they have jobs and responsibilities, goof off and are unwilling to put forth their best effort, and yet they turn around and demand performance bonuses and promotions and get pissed off if their job performance is called out.

[AKAKArnott]

@vidnut67

Absolutely - it's the result of too much pandering to and things being too easy. Far too many people think they have an entitlement to things today like the world owes them an easy life.

[rejectwolf]

@vidnut67

People are just as lazy now as they were years ago. The previous generation would say the same thing about yours and so on, yet the human race keeps on discovering new things and advancing world wide. Boxing is not a litmus test for the human spirit or work ethic to think of this theory of yours. Look at all the other professional sports and how much they have advanced. Compare a running back today to the ones 30 years ago, their strength and speed is so much more.

[vidnut67]

@rejectwolf Yes, and the previous generation was right. I stand behind what I say because I am a team leader where I work, and it is very tough to get results because we have too many people your age and younger, and I'm not saying you are like these people, who think they are entitled to everything and that the world owes them a living.

[rejectwolf]

@vidnut67

Considering your generation unionized the auto industry into oblivion and thought, and still think they are entitled to a pay equivilent of a professional your point is null and void.

PS. The litmus test point was misinterpreted, reread. Using boxing as an example doesn't work when atheletes in other sports are breaking new barriers everyday, the human spirit exists, just may be not in you.

[vidnut67]

@rejectwolf I wouldn't make to big of a point if I were you about auto workers and how they are "entitled" when the same professional athletes of today who you claim are breaking barriers spend more time getting into trouble and making headlines for all the wrong reasons than they do racking up achievements in the arena. Oh yes, they break barriers, all right. They get a lot more money than their predecessors for doing a whole lot less.

[vidnut67]

@rejectwolf And as far as the auto industry, it wasn't the unions who caused its demise. It was the right-wing jerks who decided to stop being patriots and play the greed game when Reagan went in office. My generation didn't have a damned thing to do with it; most of us were too young to vote at the time. Sadly, most of them went along with the "greed is good" philosophy like a herd of sheep.

[vidnut67]

@rejectwolf Your comment about auto workers is an insult to working men and women in my country, and how the hell would you know about the human spirit, much less whether or not it is in me. You don't even know me. I'll say this for you; you have the courage of your ignorance.

[vidnut67]

@rejectwolf I've followed boxing for 32 years, longer than you have been alive, and I have seen the fan base shift from working men and women who filled arenas and ballparks to see fights to bored rich people and high rollers who go to glorified casinos to watch fights, and I have seen the skill level degenerate from slipping and blocking while still in punching range to running, shoeshining, showboating, and waiting to the last 30 seconds to steal a round. Think that isn't a litmus test?

[neneshubby]

@AKAKArnott You are right on point.

[enigmon]

@AKAKArnott

I am glad today's boxing doesn't look anything like this (Unless 2 mid to low level fighters are slugging it out, like Arreola vs Kesada). I love boxing for it's art, for being able to hit without being hit, and for being able to knock your opponent out with a single punch. Catching every shot with your face and throwing back in hopes your opponent falls before you do is IN MY OPINION not what sweet science is all about. It might be sweet, but the science part is missing.

[AKAKArnott]

@enigmon

This is the 15th round of the fight - look at the earlier rounds before making comments.

[awefreak123456]

@enigmon you havent seen the fight, right?

[counterstriving]

@enigmon You make a valid point; but in this case it was the 15th round of a hard-fought match, they're exhausted, and both were told they had to have this round to win the fight. So some of the "sweetness" went out the window.

[easyscore]

@AKAKArnott Could not have said it better. This was a tremendous fight and one of the greatest heavyweight fights ever.

[cocospatra]

One of the best rounds in heavyweight boxing history

[karch139]

Definitely the best last round of a heavyweight championship. I think Norton won the round, and thus the fight, but, in my only boxing bet ever, I lost on Norton. It was worth it to see such a fight.

[jaymiles81]

I agree. It certainly looked to me like Norton won that round.

Pretty sad to see the rug pulled from under him.

[Ariamaluum]

Don't worry, Larry got his rug pulled in the second Spinks fight.

[kbond225]

One of the best rounds ever. I thought Holmes edged it out at the end when he rocked Norton. This was Norton's last hurrah. He had nothing left and suffered bad defeats for the rest of his career. Holmes went on to greatness.