From the Archives 1975 Crowd jeers as Frazier wins Showdown at St Kilda

By Mike Ryan March 1, 2022 -- 2.30pm

First published in The Age on March 3, 1975

Frazier's win jeered

Fight fans shun big let-down at St Kilda

"Letdown at St. Kilda," bellowed a $50 ticket-holder after watching Joe Frazier, smoking on one piston only, stop a demoralised Jimmy Ellis in the ninth round of the so-called "Showdown at St. Kilda" yesterday.

'Showdown at St Kilda' between Jimmy Ellis and Joe Frazier.Credit:The Age Archives

Ellis (14.2 3/4 ) was being battered by Frazier (14.10) in the neutral corner when referee Bob Foster called off the match after inspecting Ellis' bleeding eye and seeming to get a nod of agreement from Angelo Dundee in Ellis' corner.

Derisive yells from the Junction Oval crowd of about 7000 met the victor's claim that Muhammad All now had nowhere to go but to fight him.

"Ali would kill you, Joe," spectators cried from all round the ringside.

Frazier was disappointing in his monotonous, shunting technique. He fought the way that got him knocked down six times in two rounds by the thunderous punching of George Foreman in Kingston two years ago.

Ellis did not have the punching power to take advantage, although he landed quite a few sharp right 'counters, hooks, and uppercuts in his first three rounds.

Joe Frazier (left) and Jimmy Ellis at St Vincent's Hospital, Melbourne for a pre-fight medical.Credit:Peter Mayoh

Referee Foster gave only the first two rounds to Ellis with the rest to Frazier. Judges Gus Mercurio and Ken Brady gave the first three rounds to Ellis, called the fifth even and gave four rounds to Frazier. Their cards were identical.

Frazier's purse was $192,000, while Ellis got $54,000.

Promoter John Thieme admitted the attendance, officially put at 15,000, was disappointing and that the venture would probably cost backers $50,000.

Americans George Palmerton jnr. and Joe Williams, of Global Promotions, spent three months in Melbourne, but still had to throw in two substitute bouts at 10 minutes' notice to patch the bill.

People who paid $50 and $30 for tickets on the strength of newspaper advertisements promising "Definitely No TV or Radio Coverage", returned home to find the final rounds of the contest already being played on Channel Nine.

Ellis, who was knocked out by Frazier in 1970 when they were rival claimants for the world heavyweight championship, began the fight smartly and won the first three rounds on my card with quick jabbing.

A left hook that stunned Ellis as he stood with his back in the referee's corner during round four virtually won the fight for Smoking Joe.

Jimmy seemed overtaken by the trauma of their 1970 fight when left hooks finished him off in the fourth round in Madison Square Garden.

From that stage Ellis' morale went down and he became a passive retreater as Frazier came pressing in, throwing his heavy but inelegant left hooks to the head and body.

Ellis was cut inside the mouth and looked shaky when Frazier landed three heavy punches in round six, but Ellis muttered to referee Foster: "I'm all right."

In round seven Ellis came out of a scrimmage with a cut on his eyebrow. In the dressing rooms after, Frazier showed annoyance at the suggestion that a head bump cut Ellis, but the prints certainly matched.

The supporting card saw a first round knock-out of Ellis' sparring partner Vern McIntosh (13.1) by the Samoan Maile Naimona (14.0), and a second-round victory for Ken Smith over Shane McEvoy in a substitute bout called to fill the missing nine rounds.

Big Jim West (8.9) knocked out Guinea Hillier (8.81/2) in the fourth round of another 10-rounder with a beautiful left hook after a highly professional performance.

American heavyweight prospect Stan Ward (15.0) came in on seven minutes' notice against tubby Sydney boxer Les Miller (14.12) and toyed with him for three rounds before the referee had to stop the mismatch.

Martin Beni (10.0), of Papua New Guinea, opened the programme attractively against Locky Austin (10.4), the WA welterweight champion now with Jack Rennie.

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