George Foreman defenses were made before Foreman's first professional loss to Muhammad Ali in "The Rumble in the Jungle" in 1974. Unable to secure another title opportunity, Foreman retired after a loss to Jimmy Young in 1977. Following what he referred to as a religious epiphany, Foreman became an ordained Christian minister. Ten years later he announced a comeback and, in 1994 at age 45, he regained a portion of the heavyweight championship by knocking out 27-year-old Michael Moorer to win the unified WBA, IBF, and lineal titles. Foreman remains the oldest world heavyweight champion in history, and the second oldest in
The Rumble in the Jungle sold at $20 (inflation-adjusted $), grossing $60million (inflation-adjusted $million) in the United States. The promoters and fighters received over half of the US closed-circuit revenue, generating an income of at least $30million for the promoters and fighters; Ali and Foreman were paid $5million each. In total, including closed-circuit and free television, the fight was watched by a record estimated television audience of 1billion viewers worldwide, about a quarter of the world's 4billion population in 1974. It was the world's most-watched live television broadcast at the time. In the United Kingdom, the fight was watched by 26million viewers on BBC One,