About Willi Besmanoff

Born October 4, 1932 in Munich, Germany
Died October 20, 2010
Career record: 51 wins (19 KO), 34 defeats (11 KO), 8 draws

Besmanoff made his professional debut in 1952 and fought mainly in Germany during the first half of his career. Clay predicted that he would knock-out Besmanoff in the seventh round of their 1961 match-up, and some speculated that Clay let up early in the fight so that he would make good on his prediction. Before Besmanoff retired in 1967, he fought many of the top heavyweight contenders of his era, including Sonny Liston and Archie Moore.

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