Floyd Patterson knocked
out Johansson in the fifth round of their rematch on June 20, 1960,
to become the first man in history to regain the Undisputed World
Heavyweight Championship. Johansson hit the canvas hard, seemingly
out before he landed flat on his back. With glazed eyes, blood trickling
from his mouth and his left foot quivering, he was counted out. Johansson
lay unconscious for five minutes before he was helped onto a stool.
A
third fight between them was held on March 13, 1961 and while Johansson
put Pattersn on the floor, Paterson retained his title by knockout
in the sixth round to win the rubber match in which Patterson wa decked
twice and Johansson, once in the first round. Johansson had landed
both right hands over Floyd's left jab. After getting up from the
second knockdown, Floyd abandoned his jab and connected with a left
hook that knocked down Johansson. After that, Patterson came on with
a strong body attack that wore down Johansson. In the 6th round, Johansson
caught Patterson with a solid right. But the power in Ingemar's punches
was gone. Patterson won the fight in the 6th round by knockout.
After
the third Johansson fight, Patterson defended the title in Toronto
on December 4 against Tom McNeeley and retained the title with a fourth-round
knockout. However he did not fiht number-one contender Sonny Liston.
This was due in part to Cus D'Amato, who did not want Patterson in
the ring with a boxer with mob connections. As a result, D'Amato turned
down any challenges involving the IBC. Eventually, due to a monetary
dispute with Jimmy Jacobs, Patterson removed D'Amato from handling
his business affairs and agreed to fight Liston.
Muhammad Ali
Patterson was now the number one challenger for the title held by Muhammad Ali. On November 22, 1965 in Las Vegas, in yet another attempt to be the first to win the world heavyweight title three times, he went into the fight with an injured sacro-iliac joint in a bout in which Ali was clearly dominant. Ali called Patterson an "Uncle Tom" for refusing to call him Muhammad Ali (Patterson continued to call him Cassius Clay) and for his outspokeness against black Muslims. Before the match, Patterson had said: "This fight is a crusade to reclaim the title from the Black Muslims. As a Catholic, I am fighting Clay as a patriotic duty. I am going to return the crown to America."
Instead of scoring
a quick knockout, Ali mocked, humiliated and punished Patterson throughout
the fight but was unable to knock him out before the referee finally
stopped the fight in the 12th round.
Fading Skills
Patterson remained
a legitimate contender. In 1966 he traveled to England and knocked
out British boxer Henry Cooper in just four rounds at Wembley Stadium.
When Ali was stripped of his title for refusing induction into the military, the World Boxing Association staged an eight -man tournamet to determine his successor. Patterson fought Jerry Quarry to a draw in 1967. In a rematch four months later, Passerson lost a controversial 12-round decision to Quarry. Subsequently, in a third and final attempt at wining the title a third time, Patterson lost a controversial 15-round referee's decision to Jimmy Ellis in Stockholm, Sweden, in 1968 despite breaking Ellis's nose and scoring a disputed knockdown.
In September
1969 he divorced his first wife, Sandra Hicks Patterson, who wanted
him to quit boxing, while he still had hopes for another title shot.
Patterson continued on, defeating Oscar Bonavena in a close fight over ten rounds in early 1972.
At age 37, Patterson was stopped after
seven rounds with a cut eye while still competitive in a rematch with
Muhammad Ali for the NABF heavyweight title on September 20, 1972.
The defeat proved to be Patterson's last fight, although there was
never an announcement of retirement.
Retired Life
In retirement, he
and Ingemar Johansson became good friends who flew across the Atlantic
to visit each other every year and he served two terms as chairman
of the New York State Athletic Commission. He was also inducted into
the International Boxing Hall of Fame in 1991.
Patterson lived in New
Paltz, New York for many years with his second wife, anet Seaquist.
They had two daughters, Jennifer and Janene. In 1982 and 1983 he ran
the Stockholm Marathon together with Ingemar Johansson. He completed
the 1983 New York City Marathon in 3:35:27.
His adopted son, Tracy
Harris Patterson, was a world champion boxer in the 1990s and was
trained by Floyd during part of his career. They are the first father
and son to win world titles in boxing. Floyd also trained Canadian
heavyweight Donovan "Razor" Ruddock in 1992 for his fights with Greg
Page, Phil Jackson, and Lennox Lewis.
The New Paltz High School football
field was named "Floyd Patterson Field" in 1985.