Featured Exhibit
Sonny Liston signs autographs at the Poland Spring Hotel while two state troopers guard the living quarters.
Sketch by LeRoy Neiman, taken from "The LeRoy Neiman Sketchbook: 1964 Liston vs. Clay, 1965 Ali vs. Liston" donated in 2005.
The Fight Travels
By May 8, 1965, Inter-Continental Promotions had secured a new location for the fight--the Central Main Youth Center in Lewiston, Maine. This hockey rink could seat only 3,000 compared to the nearly 15,000 seats at the Boston Garden and was 137 miles away from the fight's original location. Lewiston had a population of about 41,000 and would be the first city in Maine--and, perhaps, the last--to host a heavyweight title bout. The Governor at the time, John H. Reed, stated, "This is one of the greatest things to happen in Maine."
Sonny Liston subsequently moved his training camp to the Poland Spring Hotel, about 20 miles away from Lewiston. According to sports writers reporting on his training, Liston appeared to do very little in the last two weeks leading up to the fight. He was always seen with sherrifs and bodyguards surrounding him and he talked very little with media about his plans to win back the title.
Muhammad Ali decided to keep his training camp in Chicopee, Massachusetts, where he could still train in front of crowds and taunt Liston to any reporter that would listen to him. He did not move on to Lewiston until May 23, arriving in his newly-repaired red and white bus, which had "World's Heavyweight Champion" painted in bold letters on the side.
