After staggering to his feet in what was the most trying fight of his life, Muhammad Ali admitted: 'This is the closest I've ever been to death'.
They were honest words which reflected the unprecedented brutality of the third and final clash with his fierce rival Joe Frazier in the Philippines on October 1, 1975.
The 'Thrilla in Manila' – so named thanks to Ali's famous boast before the fight – was played out over 14 rounds in front of a record global audience of one billion viewers.
It's widely considered to be one of the greatest fights of all time and remains the benchmark by which the quality of all modern heavyweight showdowns are judged.
Although Ali was the victor, the fight only came to an end when Frazier's manager, Eddie Futch, asked the referee to stop the contest due to the injuries suffered by his charge.
Summoning all his strength to end the fight, Ali had battered Frazier with a flurry of punches which had made his eyes swell and sent his gumshield flying from his mouth.
Just before the end was declared, Ali was in so much pain that he had wanted to throw in the towel and had pleaded for his gloves to be cut off.
But whilst Ali ultimately lived up to his mocking vow, that the fight would be 'a killa and a thrilla and a chilla when I get that gorilla in Manila' – he was never the same again.
Both he and Frazier retired for good in 1981 after sliding into decline and Ali was then diagnosed with Parkinson's syndrome in 1984.
The later years of the great fighter – who died aged 74 in 2016 – were ravaged by the effects of the disease and there is still a question mark over whether the physical impact of the 1975 fight might have been at least partly to blame.
After staggering to his feet in what was the most trying fight of his life, Muhammad Ali admitted: 'This is the closest I've ever been to death'. They were honest words which reflected the unprecedented brutality of the third and final clash with his fierce rival Joe Frazier in the Philippines on October 1, 1975
The 'Thrilla in Manila' – so named thanks to Ali's famous boast before the fight – was played out over 14 rounds in front of a record global audience of one billion viewers
Although Ali was the victor, the fight only came to an end when Frazier's manager, Eddie Futch, asked the referee to stop the contest due to the injuries suffered by his charge
The 1975 fight came after two previous clashes between the pair. The first meeting – at New York's Maddison Square Garden in 1971 – ended in a victory for Frazier.
However, both men ended up in hospital – Ali with a cricket ball-sized swelling on his jaw and Frazier for recovery and tests.
At the same venue three years later, Ali turned the tables on Frazier in what was a unanimous but controversial decision by the event's judges.
Seething with a sense of a injustice, Frazier branded the men who scored the bout in Ali's favour as 'three blind mice'.
Frazier earned his third meeting with Ali after victories over Jimmy Ellis and Jerry Quarry.
Ali went into the fight after flooring George Foreman at the 'Rumble in the Jungle' and had also enjoyed victories over Chuck Wepner, Ron Lyle and Joe Bugner.
The Philippines's president, Ferdinand Marcos, was delighted that his country had been chosen by promoter Don King as the location for Ali and Frazier's third meeting.
Overall, the pair traded more than 100 power shots to each other's head. Above: Ali hits Frazier with a brutal left hook
Joe Frazier speaks with reporters after losing to Muhammed Ali by Technical Knock-out in the 14th round of their heavyweight title fight in Manila
Frazier's aim was to target Ali's stomach, ribs, kidney and liver. Ali planned to go for Frazier's head and blitz through the early rounds on fresh legs.
Ali went into the match as the favourite. The Daily Mail's Peter Moss reported how the pair 'bring out the worst in one another'.
He added prophetically: 'They have never surrendered in the ring, and any semblance of retreat is unthinkable in this fight for the heavyweight championship of the world'.
As well as making the famous jibe about Frazier, Ali confidently claimed on September 29: 'This will be the destruction of Joe Frazier.
'A complete annihilation shall take place on October 1.'
In the aggressive opening exchanges, Frazier swung his heavy shots at Ali's body. After many of them found their mark, Ali said to his opponent: 'They told me Joe Frazier was washed up.'
Whilst Ali ultimately lived up to his mocking vow, that the fight would be 'a killa and a thrilla and a chilla when I get that gorilla in Manila' – he was never the same again. Both he and Frazier retired for good in 1981 after sliding into decline and Ali was then diagnosed with Parkinson's syndrome in 1984. The later years of the great fighter – who died in 2016 – were ravaged by the effects of the disease. Pictured: Ali in 2012
Frazier's aim was to target Ali's stomach, ribs, kidney and liver. Ali planned to go for Frazier's head and blitz through the early rounds on fresh legs. Above: Ali hitting the head of his opponent Joe Frazier during their bout in Manila.
As well as making the famous jibe about Frazier, Ali confidently claimed on September 29: 'This will be the destruction of Joe Frazier. A complete annihilation shall take place on October 1'
