Few gave Muhammad Ali any chance when he dared to step into the ring with formidable world heavyweight champion George Foreman in Kinshasa, Zaire on 30 October, 1974

But Ali took his fans - and Foreman - by immediate surprise, launching a series of right-hand leads. An audacious and risky tactic for an orthodox fighter, this put the champion off balance and gave Ali all-important control of the fight's tempo

Ali's next trick - the famous "rope-a-dope" - seemed suicidal. From round two, he laid back almost horizontally on ropes which had apparently been loosened pre-fight by his team, and allowed Foreman to land clubbing punches to his body

Ali had conditioned himself specifically to take body blows and the loose ropes absorbed some of Foreman's immense power. Seeing his rival tired from his efforts, Ali waged psychological war during clinches, saying: "Is that all you got George?"

Ali's taunts had the desired impact, driving Foreman to expend every last drop of his energy on increasingly wild attacks. In round eight, Ali spotted his chance, sprang off the ropes and dropped the champion with a lightning-quick combination