Muhammad Ali’s heavyweight title belt from his “Rumble in the Jungle” win over George Foreman has been sold at an auction.
The prized item was purchased by Jim Irsay, the owner of the Indianapolis Colts of the National Football League, for $6.18 million.
Irsay, a noted memorabilia collector, announced the purchase on Twitter, saying he was “proud to be the steward” of the historic World Boxing Council belt.
He went on to hint the item might be shown as a part of his collection at an August show in Chicago as well as in September at Indianapolis.
The sale price through Heritage Auctions was called among the highest prices ever paid for a sports memorabilia item, a title befitting Ali’s history as boxing’s most renowned name. “After several hours of watching two bidders go back and forth over this belt, this proved to be a battle worthy of the Rumble itself,” Chris Ivy, Heritage’s director of sports auctions, said in a statement.
The “Rumble in the Jungle” in 1974 is regarded as one of boxing’s most memorable bouts.
Ali scored an upset over the previously undefeated Foreman in Kinshasa, Zaire (now the Democratic Republic of Congo) with an eighth-round knockout to reclaim the world heavyweight crown.
The fight proved to be Muhammad Ali’s resurgence in the heavyweight division with the belt staying with the boxing G.O.A.T till 1978 when he lost to Leon Spinks.
Ali passed away in 2016 at the age of 74 but his name continues to reverberate in boxing circles to this day with his grandson now taking the mantle.
