![]() ![]() ![]() Terrell's tenure at the top of the fight game was controversial, though, because most of the boxing world considered Ali - who still held the World Boxing Council crown at the time - the true heavyweight champion. In 55 professional fights, he posted a 46-9 record with 21 knockouts. Terrell, who stood 6-foot-6 and deployed a withering jab with his 82-inch reach, won a unanimous 15-round decision over Machen and defended his crown against George Chuvalo and Doug Jones. Terrell's big break came in 1965, when he met Eddie Machen for the World Boxing Association title that was declared vacant after Ali insisted on a rematch with Sonny Liston before fighting a WBA-mandated contender. ![]() He died Tuesday in Chicago of complications from Alzheimer's disease, according to his wife Maxine. Terrell also twice ran unsuccessfully for alderman of his far South Side neighborhood and built a janitorial company that eventually employed 100 people. The son of Mississippi sharecroppers and longtime Chicago resident worked as fight promoter after his boxing career ended. CHICAGO - Ernie Terrell, whose brief reign as heavyweight champion ended with a punishing loss to Muhammad Ali in a 1967 grudge match, has died. ![]()
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