{"id":163719,"date":"2021-02-07T14:08:10","date_gmt":"2021-02-07T22:08:10","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.casino.org\/news\/?p=163719"},"modified":"2021-02-07T15:10:40","modified_gmt":"2021-02-07T23:10:40","slug":"leon-spinks-heavyweight-champ-who-beat-ali-dies-in-southern-nevada","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.casino.org\/news\/leon-spinks-heavyweight-champ-who-beat-ali-dies-in-southern-nevada\/","title":{"rendered":"Leon Spinks, Heavyweight Champ Who Beat Ali, Dies in Southern Nevada"},"content":{"rendered":"

Former heavyweight champion Leon Spinks, who rocketed to fame by beating Muhammad Ali at a Las Vegas casino, died Friday. He was 67.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

\"Leon
Leon Spinks rejoices in the ring at the Las Vegas Hilton after beating Muhammad Ali in 1978. Spinks died Friday night in Henderson, Nevada. (Image: The Guardian)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

In recent years, Spinks suffered from prostate cancer. More than a year ago, the Spinks family reported it had spread to his bladder, according to the New York Times<\/i>. Spinks, a former Olympic light heavyweight gold medalist, died in a Henderson, Nevada, hospital.<\/p>\n

Spinks was 24 years old and only had a 6-0-1 professional record when he faced Ali at the Las Vegas Hilton on Feb. 15, 1978. The hotel-casino, just east of the Las Vegas Strip, now is the Westgate Las Vegas Resort and Casino.<\/p>\n

At the time, Ali held the World Boxing Association and World Boxing Council heavyweight titles. He was the overwhelming favorite to win. He outweighed Spinks, 224 to 197 pounds.<\/p>\n

However, Ali was 36 years old and considered past his prime. Spinks beat Ali in a 15-round split decision. This was the only time Ali lost a title in the ring.<\/p>\n

“It wasn’t that Ali wasn’t at his best, but Leon shocked everybody with how good Leon was,\u201d promoter Bob Arum said in a story published on the ESPN website.<\/p>\n

Ali said Spinks \u201chad the will to win and the stamina.\u201d<\/p>\n

\n

He hit pretty hard,\u201d Ali said.<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n

Later that month, Spinks appeared on the cover of Sports Illustrated<\/i>, flashing a gap-tooth smile above the word \u201cLeon!\u201d\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Seven months later, Ali defeated Spinks in a title rematch at the Louisiana Superdome in New Orleans before more than 63,000 fight fans. The bout was televised on ABC.<\/p>\n

Here’s a video of the original Spinks-Ali fight.<\/p>\n

https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/watch?v=lzu7mwyFu2E<\/p>\n

\u2018Going to be Somebody\u2019<\/h2>\n

Spinks had grown up poor in St. Louis and was bullied as a frail child who had asthma, the New York Times<\/i> reported.<\/p>\n

He became involved in boxing at 13 and dropped out of high school during his junior year to join the Marine Corps. He later said the Marine Corps made him a man.<\/p>\n

After Olympic success in the 1976 Montreal Games, Spinks embarked on a professional career. His first pro fight was Jan. 15, 1977, at the Aladdin hotel-casino in Las Vegas. That site now is the location of the Planet Hollywood Resort and Casino on the Strip. In his debut, the 195-pound Spinks beat 185-pound \u201cLightening\u201d Bob Smith in a fifth-round technical knockout.\u00a0 \u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

A year later, Spinks would defeat Ali at the nearby Hilton. That night he told Sports Illustrated<\/em> his father had gone around telling people he would “never be anything.\u201d\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

\u00a0<\/span>\u201cI made up my mind that I was going to be somebody in this world,\u201d Spinks said.<\/p>\n

Hall of Fame<\/h2>\n

Spinks last fought in December 1995, losing in St. Louis to Fred Houpe, a 45-year-old boxer who had gone 17 years without a fight before then, according to the New York Times<\/em>.<\/p>\n

Spinks was 42 when he retired with a record of 26-17-3. The final decades were difficult financially. He cleaned locker rooms and bathrooms at a YMCA in Columbus, Nebraska. He unloaded McDonald\u2019s trucks.\u00a0 <\/span>After moving to Southern Nevada, he could be seen at sites such as Planet Hollywood, selling autographed pictures for $50 each.<\/p>\n

\n

Asked at an autograph session if Ali was the toughest person he ever faced, Spinks smiled. He respectfully said no, the toughest person he ever faced was his mom.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

In 2017, Spinks was inducted in the Nevada Boxing Hall of Fame. His brother, Michael, and a son, Cory, also were champion boxers.<\/p>\n

Spinks is among several well-known people connected to Las Vegas who died recently, including Siegfried Fischbacher of the Siegfried and Roy<\/a> entertainment duo.<\/p>\n

In December, Dawn Wells, star of the 1960s sitcom Gilligan\u2019s Island<\/i> and a former Miss Nevada, died in Los Angeles. Also in December, popular singer Phyllis McGuire<\/a> died in Las Vegas.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Former heavyweight champion Leon Spinks, who rocketed to fame by beating Muhammad Ali at a Las Vegas casino, died Friday. He was 67.\u00a0 In recent years, Spinks suffered from prostate cancer. More than a year ago, the Spinks family reported it had spread to his bladder, according to the New York Times. Spinks, a former […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":55,"featured_media":163720,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[18,16],"tags":[],"acf":[],"yoast_head":"\nLeon Spinks, Heavyweight Champ Who Beat Ali, Dies in Southern Nevada - Casino.org Leon Spinks, Heavyweight Champ Who Beat Ali, Dies in Southern Nevada<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"Former heavyweight champion Leon Spinks, who rocketed to fame by beating Muhammad Ali at a Las Vegas casino, died Friday. He was 67.\u00a0 In recent years, Former heavyweight boxing champion Leon Spinks died in a hospital in Henderson, Nevada, at age 67.\" \/>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"noindex, follow\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Leon Spinks, Heavyweight Champ Who Beat Ali, Dies in Southern Nevada - Casino.org Leon Spinks, Heavyweight Champ Who Beat Ali, Dies in Southern Nevada\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"Former heavyweight champion Leon Spinks, who rocketed to fame by beating Muhammad Ali at a Las Vegas casino, died Friday. 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