Artist: Neil Leifer
Title: Muhammad Ali Knocks Out Sonny Liston
Year created: 1965
Medium: Historic Photographic Image of Ali vs Liston 1965 Boxing Match
Height (inches): 17-3/4
Width (inches): 14-3/4
Depth (inches): 1
This piece is framed.
Includes a certificate of authenticity.
Description of piece:
Bid to win of the most legendary sports and boxing images of all time, hand-signed "Cassius Clay" by boxing legend Muhammad Ali!
Neil Leifer’s iconic photograph of Muhammad Ali moments after his historic knockout of Sonny Liston is heralded as the greatest sports photo of the century, and is featured in TIME’s 100 Photos curated compilation of the 100 most influential photographs of all time.
On May 25, 1965 in Lewiston, Maine, 23-year-old heavyweight boxing champion Muhammad Ali— (who at that point in his career, still went by his birth-name, Cassius Clay)— squared off against 34-year-old Sonny Liston, from whom he had won the title the previous year. One minute and 44 seconds into the first round, Ali delivered a first-round knockout punch to Liston. From his ringside seat, Sports Illustrated photographer Neil Leifer captured this legendary photo of the champion Ali towering over his opponent. The image went on to be selected for the cover of Sport’s Illustrated issue on “The Century’s Greatest Sports Photos”.
Boxing legend Muhammad Ali has hand-signed the image 'Cassius Clay' in bold black marker. For added drama and visibility, the signature stands out against Ali's white boxing shorts, on which he has signed. Ali’s 'Cassius Clay' signature has been examined and determined to be authentic by James Spence Authentication (JSA), and the item is accompanied by a full Letter of Authenticity from JSA.
The signed image comes custom framed in a substantial black frame, measuring 17-3/4” in height x 14-3/4” width x 1" depth, with a custom mat in crisp white.
Artist bio:
Neil Leifer's illustrious photojournalism and fine art photography career has spanned over 50 years. Beginning in 1960, his pictures regularly appeared in every major national magazine, including the Saturday Evening Post, Look, LIFE, Newsweek, Time and, most often, Sports Illustrated— and has included over 200 Sports Illustrated, Time, and People Magazine covers.
Leifer has published 16 books, 9 of which have been collections of his sports photographs. Sports, his 1978 Abrams book, is considered by many to be the quintessential sports photography book. He is the 2006 recipient of the prestigious Lucie Award for Achievement in Sports Photography, and in 2008 he was honored for his outstanding contribution to Time Inc. journalism with The Britton Hadden Lifetime Achievement Award.
Traveling the world on sports assignments, Leifer has photographed 16 Olympic Games, 4 FIFA World Cups, 15 Kentucky Derbies, countless World Series games, the first 12 Super Bowls and every important heavyweight title fight since Ingemar Johansson beat Floyd Patterson in 1959. He photographed his favorite subject, Muhammad Ali, on almost 60 different occasions—covering his biggest fights and over 30 one-on-one studio sessions. “Boxing” says Leifer “is the one sport I still love shooting.”