The sport of boxing used to be one of the biggest and most popular in the United State and back when Ken Norton was fighting, matches were front page news and while that has slipped in recent years, Norton's impact in the sport has not, which is why many are saddened that he died at the age of 70 on Wednesday.
According to the Associated Press, Norton died at 70 years old on Wednesday after dealing with a serious stroke and he died at Veterans Affairs' medical facility, which is located in Las Vegas in the town of Henderson and he dies after previously being one of the men to defeat Muhammad Ali for the heavyweight title. The two did battle over a number of fights and the most memorable one was when Norton broke the jaw of the champ and forced him to get treatment at the hospital for it.
The two fought at Yankee Stadium and Norton was one of Ali's best challengers and many in the sport said that he was a very good fighter, especially in the bouts against Ali. According to ESPN.com, Norton has the distinction of being the heavyweight champion despite not winning the title in the ring and he also had a great battle with Larry Holmes and while he was considered the underdog in many fights, he never backed away from a challenge.
"Kenny was a good, good fighter. He beat a lot of guys," said Ed Schuyler Jr., who covered many of Norton's fights for The Associated Press. "He gave Ali fits because Ali let him fight coming forward instead of making him back up."
