Cassius Clay, later Muhammad Ali, began the road to becoming boxing’s biggest superstar after winning his first pro bout on this day 56 years ago.
Having won the light-heavyweight gold medal at the Rome Olympics, Clay turned pro later that year with Tunney Hunsaker welcoming him to the paid ranks in his home town of Louisville.
While the journeyman took an 18-year-old Clay to the full six rounds, he lost every one of them, with his nose busted and a cut over his right eye.
After the heavyweight bout in front of a crowd of 6180, Hunsaker – a 30-year-old police chief who earned $300 – said: “He’s awfully good for an 18-year-old and as fast as a middleweight.”
1950: Bill Rexford wins the second NASCAR Sprint Cup.
1964: Australian Bobby Simpson completes a century in each innings against Pakistan.
1985: Jockey Lester Piggott rides one winner at Nottingham before retiring.
2008: Philadelphia Phillies end a 25-year wait for a World Series title by beating Tampa Bay Rays in Game 5.
