George Foreman didn't want him to get into the fight", Foreman said when interviewed years later. This fight became known as the "Caracas Caper". Foreman had cruised past two of the top names in the rankings. The win gave him a 40–0 record with 37 knockouts. Foreman's next title defence, against Muhammad Ali, was historic. During the summer of 1974, he traveled to Zaire (now the Democratic Republic of the Congo) to defend his title against Ali. The bout was promoted as "The Rumble in the Jungle". During training in Zaire, Foreman suffered a cut above his eye, forcing postponement of the
The Rumble in the Jungle match, so I had to let it go." Foreman eventually concluded, in 2003: "[Ali is] the greatest man I've ever known. Not greatest boxer that's too small for him. He had a gift. He's not pretty he's beautiful. Everything America should be, Muhammad Ali is." The fight was broadcast live pay-per-view on closed-circuit television, also known as theatre television, to venues across the world. The fight had a record estimated 50million viewers on closed-circuit television worldwide, grossing an estimated $100million (inflation-adjusted $million) in revenue. In the United States, the fight had an estimated 3million closed-circuit viewers in 400venues, with tickets