Boxing gloves worn by the late Muhammad Ali during the "Fight Of The Century" against Joe Frazier are expected to sell for over $1 million when they hit the auction block this upcoming Monday.
The owner of the gloves, Jeff Rosenberg, has amassed an enormous collection of Ali memorabilia over the last 30 years and is finally selling some of the pieces including the gloves that he originally purchased for $388,375 in August of 2014. That's a solid ROI if you ask me.
After cutting them off after the fight, in which Ali lost after 15 rounds, trainer and cornerman Angelo Dundee brought them home, where they remained until his death in 2012. The interior of the Everlast gloves are labeled and signed by Dundee.
"When these last sold, it was clearly an an aberration," said Ken Goldin of Goldin Auctions. "This one just slipped through the cracks. But with Ali's passing and the recognition once again, not only of his greatness as a boxer but as a world leader, things have now changed."
Both Ali and Frazier were undefeated heading into the "Fight Of The Century" at Madison Square Garden in 1971, which is the reason why Goldin believes the gloves will fetch over $1 million.
"No matter what the price, there's going to be a sense of loss," Rosenberg said. "It's a connection to the greatest fight."
[Via]