43YO Ex-Broncos DE Went Toe-to-Toe With Muhammad Ali by Sacrificing His Own Personal Property, Years Before 1992 Tragedy

Back in the 1980s, the Las Vegas Raiders had a beast holding their defensive fort. The Denver Broncos initially drafted the 6ft 2, 255-pound DE in 1971, becoming a part of the infamous ‘Orange Crush’ defense. But out of his 15 seasons in the NFL, fans remember him for his five years with the Raiders, after being traded by the Cleveland Browns in 1982. 

But that is not all that fans remember about this defensive beast. Apart from holding the fort on the football field, he also went head-to-head with boxing maestro Muhammad Ali. 

Lyle Alzado was a formidable athlete

During his tenure in the NFL, Lyle Alzado was a feared defensive end. He passed away in 1992 because of a rare form of cancer known as brain lymphoma. But even after decades of his death, fans still remember how he was a crucial part of the Raiders roster during their Super Bowl XVIII victory. But another fascinating memory that rings in the minds of fans to date is that Alzado took to the ring to fight the boxing legend, Muhammad Ali.

Lyle Alzado was a Golden Gloves champ with a 44-1 rookie record. In 1978, Muhammad Ali regained the heavyweight title by fighting Leon Spinks. And a year later, he signed an eight-round exhibition fight with Lyle Alzado at the Mile High Stadium. Once, the DE famously said, “If me and King Kong went into the alley, only one of us would come out. And it wouldn’t be the monkey.” This was a testament to the confidence Alzado had in himself. He was so confident that the fight would sell that he put up his own house as the mortgage. His sister Janice Alzado-Lotz, said during a documentary by NFL films, “he mortgaged his house as a backing for the fight.”

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The fight occurred. And while no one officially won the match, it was a financial nightmare for Lyle Alzado.

The fight did not live up to its hype

According to broadcasters of the fight, Lyle Alzado hoped for a crowd of 50,000 to 60,000 people in attendance at the Mile High Stadium. But according to UPI, only 11,128 paying fans were in attendance to watch the bout between the DE and Muhammad Ali. They guaranteed the boxing legend $250,000, while Alzado was to receive $100,000. But the fight only made $209,000, and the DE got nothing financially. Nine years later, Alzado and the promoters were still fighting a legal battle at the Colorado Supreme Court. The jury awarded the DE with $92,500 initially. But after an appeals court reversed the decision, the Supreme Court confirmed the reversal. 

While it is still unsure if Alzado lost his home, he will forever be remembered as one of the craziest players to ever play in the NFL.

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