Training the Greatest: The Story of Ali and Dundee

After Angelo Dundee was officially on the payroll of the Louisville Sponsoring Group, Muhammad Ali (then still known as Cassius Clay) hopped on a train to Miami Beach, Florida to begin his training before his second professional fight scheduled for December 27, 1960, against Miamian Herb Siler. Dundee wanted to wait to schedule a fight until after the holiday season so Ali could spend Christmas with his family, but 18-year-old Muhammad Ali was hungry to start boxing his way to a heavyweight title. 

Newspapers continuously reported on his training sessions at the Fifth Street Gym, many saying that Ali's biggest shortcomings were the lack of power in his punches, and his seemingly fast, but clumsy footwork. Dundee had a psychological approach to training Ali. He refrained from ordering Ali to do certain workouts, as he wanted Ali to feel like he was in charge of his own training and Dundee was simply there for support. Instead, if he wanted him to work on his jab, Dundee would say something like "That was great, your left jab looked sharp!"--even if Ali hadn't tried a left jab.

In Dundee's 2007 book My View From the Corner, he recollected: 

Clay was always his own man. A typical dialogue between the two of us would go something like this: Clay: "I'm gonna run five miles." And I'd say, "That's good for your legs." And then, testing me, he'd contradict himself, saying, "No, I'm gonna rest." And I'd say, "Good, you need your rest." No sense in interferring with a boxer who has his own mind. As long as he did his training, who was I to meddle?

Evidently, this approach to training worked well, as Ali fought four opponents in Miami between December 1960 and February 1961, defeating all within six rounds of their scheduled eight. Then, he returned home to Louisville, Kentucky to fight LaMar Clark in April 1961, knocking him out in the second round. Ali was now 6-0 as a professional, and Dundee was thrilled.