KING OF THE GRILL

WHEN Muhammad Ali died, George Foreman said in one of his many tributes to his foe-turned-friend that he was “bigger than boxing”.

- CHRIS MCKENNA

He added that saying Ali was the best boxer of all time is only part of the story.

In some ways those words also describe Foreman now he has passed like his old rival.

Maybe not the best boxer of all time but certainly one of the best heavyweights in history.

George Edward Foreman died on Friday at the age of 76 peacefully and surrounded by the family he loved.

He was not just an iconic heavyweight fighter from one of the sport’s glory eras but also a minister, a humanitarian and an entrepreneur.

Once belittled as just a robotic, characterless puncher by Ali before their iconic Rumble in the Jungle fight in 1974, Foreman would go on to become one of sport’s most-loved characters.

When Ali died in 2016, Foreman sat by the phone and spoke to anyone who called about his great friend.

He wanted to tell his stories about ‘The Greatest’ but, even though without Foreman the Ali story is not as special, ‘Big George’ wrote his own chapters in sport and history.

If Ali was here today then he would be regaling similarly warm tales about his rival.

The pair will always be intrinsically linked thanks to those eight stunning rounds in Zaire.