1976 Muhammad Ali Fight Worn Robe from Ken Norton III Bout.. ...

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Anarchy reigns at Yankee Stadium rubber match

1976 Muhammad Ali Fight Worn Robe from Ken Norton III Bout.
One can only imagine the thoughts racing through Muhammad Ali's mind as he walked to the ring, clad in this robe, to face what he knew would be a painful ordeal. But if there was any fear in his heart, there was no sign of it in his eyes as he made his way over to Norton's corner in the moments after they stepped through the ring ropes to lock eyes with the challenger. The mental game plays out for several minutes as the ring announcements are made, Ali pacing, raising his gloves, pumping his fist, chanting something to the packed crowd at ringside, supplying television cameras a view of all sides of the robe presented here.

It's a gorgeous garment, crafted from crushed white velvet with white satin lining, "Muhammad Ali" arching across the back in regal purple tackle twill block lettering. Ali's personalized "Everlast" label is affixed to the pocket over his heart. Original satin belt remains. Only slight signs of wear and storage are apparent, assuring elite aesthetics that beg for a full-sized mannequin for display. A 2002 letter of authenticity from leading boxing memorabilia expert Craig Hamilton perfectly describes the garment down to its smallest detail, but references a lot tag from the original sale of the robe out of the famous Drew "Bundini" Brown storage locker sale that has since been lost.

We mention this only in the interest of full disclosure, and stress that this lost tag in no way affects the legitimacy of the lot. For the uninitiated, Brown was Ali's cornerman and close friend who kept much of Ali's most important memorabilia in a storage locker that went unpaid after Brown's death. The contents were sold at auction, the source of many of the top fight worn Ali material in the hobby today. LOA from Craig Hamilton. LOA from Heritage Auctions.

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