50 Years Later: the Rumble in the Jungle and Zaire 74

While Don King envisioned and helped promote the fight, Muhammad Ali and the Video Techniques Company also helped ensure its success. Muhammad Ali's media coverage presented the portrait of a fearless Ali spurring substantial interest in the fight. Yet, Ali expressed concern about his ability to win in private.

Coming into the fight, Foreman had claimed the heavyweight gold medal at the 1968 Mexico City Olympics. He maintained a record of 40-0, knocking out 35 opponents often within 3 rounds. Foreman was known for having the strongest punch since Sonny Liston (who Ali fought a decade before) and was the 4-1 favorite against Ali. In contrast, Ali had a 44-2 record, and had lost to Frazier and Norton who Foreman beat with ease. Ali and Foreman were nearly identically sized listed at 6'3" and with Ali weighing 216 and Foreman 220.

When preparing for the fight, Ali trained at his "Fighter's Heaven" camp in Deer Lake, Pennsylvania, with future heavyweight champion Larry Holmes. Like other fights, the media, celebrities, and curious fans consistently visited as he prepared, paying a one-dollar entrance fee. To crowds and media, Ali proudly boasted that he would dance around Foreman as he aimlessly punched. People questioned if Ali still had the speed from before being stripped of his title to evade Foreman's abrasive punches.

Foreman's biggest inspiration to become a boxer was Ali, but his style contrasted Ali's elegant masquerading around the ring. To this point, he had relied on the pure magnitude of his punches to tire or knock out opponents. To be able to defeat Ali, he was encouraged by Archie Moore and Dick Sanders to trap him on the ropes and punch his body and head until he was knocked out. Yet, he failed to predict Ali's conviction and approach to the fight.

Muhammad Ali at his Deer Lake Training Camp Photograph, 1974