Muhammad Ali’s “Thrilla in Manila” trunks sold for $1.2 million, including buyer's premium, at Sotheby’s Friday, nine months after the auction house withdrew the trunks prior to an April auction.
The famous fight, which pitted Ali against Joe Frazier in 1975, ended in an Ali TKO at the start of the 15th round and is considered one of the most significant boxing matches in history.
Ali’s shorts from that fight, signed by Ali and inscribed by his assistant trainer and corner man Drew “Bundini” Brown, have sold six times, including the latest at Sotheby’s.
In 1988, they were discovered in Brown’s storage locker after his death and subsequently auctioned for less than $1,000. In 2002, Sotheby’s facilitated a private sale for an unknown sum.
The trunks were then sold twice in 2012, for $118,500 at REA then for $155,350 at Heritage.
When the auction house listed them for auction in April, it provided an estimated range of $4 million to $6 million.
Hours before the auction was set to take place, the lot was pulled from the website. Bidding had reached $3.8 million, without buyer’s premium. That mark was below the low estimate at the time, but well above what the trunks sold for Friday.
In a statement provided by a Sotheby’s spokesperson after the lot was withdrawn, the auction house said it would delay the sale “until further notice,” to allow the consignor to “pursue additional public viewing opportunities.”
“It is among the most important items of sports memorabilia to come to market and was much admired by viewers prior to the sale, so we are thrilled that the consignor has chosen to continue to share these historically significant trunks publicly and seek more venues for public exhibition,” Sotheby’s wrote in the statement.
It’s unclear to what extent, if any, the trunks were shopped privately in the months since, nor where the consignor sought to display them at public exhibition.
This time, the auction house utilized an irrevocable bid on the trunks, meaning Sotheby’s entered into an agreement with an individual willing to place a bid at an undisclosed price, guaranteeing the lot will sell, and in return receiving a cut of the upside if the sale closes above the bid.
There was also no public estimate placed on the lot, which started bidding at $1 million.
Will Stern is a reporter and editor for cllct.