Produced by Don King and broadcast to many countries worldwide with HBO's antenna, The Thrilla in Manila had a tremendous media following.
Some boxing fans call it the greatest fight ever. Ali and Frazier seemed to honestly dislike each other outside the ring as well as inside, and they had already split two fights between them, Frazier retaining his World Heavyweight crown on their first meeting, at Madison Square Garden in 1971, but Ali taking a 12 round decision over Frazier in 1973.
The city of Cairo had apparently been considered as a possible host to the fight: The August 1975 issue of Ring Magazine had a fictitious fight-poster of Ali-Frazier III on its cover, and the poster listed Nasser Stadium in Cairo as the place the fight was taking place.
Ali spent his time in Manila taunting Frazier at every opportunity, even calling him The Gorilla. So, when they got into the ring, they were two angry warriors.
Ali retained his title when, after 14 brutal rounds, Frazier's trainer Eddie Futch stopped the fight giving Ali a technical knockout when Frazier did not answer the bell for round 15. Ali compared his third and last fight with Frazier to that of a near-death experience.
See also: Fight of the Century.