California Boxing Hall of Fame to enshrine Muhammad Ali posthumously on Oct. 22

The California Boxing Hall of Fame announced Saturday that it will induct Muhammad Ali into its posthumous wing at a Sportsmen’s Lodge event in Studio City on Oct. 22.

Don Fraser, who operates the Hall of Fame, said he sought to induct Ali while he was alive, but scheduling conflicts prevented it.

Ali died at 74 on Friday at a Phoenix hospital, where he was treated for a respiratory illness and died from died of septic shock “due to unspecified natural causes,” the family said in a statement.

The International Boxing Hall of Fame in New York on Saturday lowered flags to half-staff for Ali, who was inducted in 1990.

“Muhammad Ali is far and away the most famous athlete in the world,” said Edward Brophy, the international shrine’s executive director. “His impact reached well beyond the boxing ring and he became a worldwide symbol of compassion and perseverance.”

Ali fought three times at the recently closed Los Angeles Sports Arena in 1962, scoring technical knockouts of Archie Moore and George Logan, with a fifth-round knockout of Alejandro Lavorante sandwiched in between.

On March 31, 1973, Ali returned to the state and suffered a broken jaw en route to a split-decision loss to Ken Norton at the San Diego Sports Arena.

A rematch clause led to negotiations that were complicated by Norton’s insistence on receiving 50,000 if Ali failed to participate in the fight – something the San Diego Sports Arena owners were not willing to back.

Fraser, who was then the matchmaker for Forum boxing, said Forum owner Jack Kent Cooke put up the $50,000 and landed the rematch.

“That was the crowning fight of my career,” Fraser said.

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World heavyweight boxing champion Muhammad Ali poses at the Royal Artillery Gymnasium in London while training for a 1966 fight against British champion Henry Cooper. Ali, who compiled a 56-5 professional record, is considered one of the greatest boxers of all-time.  (Trevor Humphries / Getty Images)

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Muhammad Ali, second from right, stands on the medal podium at the Olympic Games in Rome after winning the light-heavyweight gold medal. Zbigniew Pietrzykowski of Poland, the man he beat in the final, is on his left.  (IOC / Allsport)

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Boxer Muhammad Ali is seen with his trainer, Angelo Dundee, at City Parks Gym in New York on Feb. 8, 1962.  (Dan Grossi / Associated Press)

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Heavyweight champion Sonny Liston, left, and Muhammad Ali exchange punches during their first fight in Miami on Feb. 25, 1964. Ali, then known as Cassius Clay, defeated Liston by technical knockout in the seventh round to claim the title.  (Hulton Deutsch / Allsport)

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Heavyweight champion Muhammad Ali stands over fallen challenger Sonny Liston, shouting after knocking him down with a short, hard right to the jaw during their bout in Lewiston, Maine, on May 25, 1965.  (John Rooney / Associated Press)

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Muhammad Ali trains in London in 1966.   (Wesley / Getty Images)

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Muhammad Ali, left, smiles as he plays notes on a piano while sitting next to recording artist Etta James on Sept. 22, 1974.  (Horst Faas / Associated Press)

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While in Zaire preparing for his upcoming bout against George Foreman, Muhammad Ali declares in the Lingala language, “ako bo mai ye,” which translates as “I will kill him” while appearing before a crowd of fans on Sept. 12, 1974.  (Horst Faas / Associated Press)

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Mobutu Sese Seko, center, president of Zaire, raises the arms of George Foreman, left, and Muhammad Ali during a rally in Kinshasa on Sept. 22, 1974, to promote their upcoming heavyweight title bout.  (Horst Faas/ Associated Press)

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Muhammad Ali, right, punches George Foreman in the head during their heavyweight title bout in Zaire on Oct. 30, 1974.  (Ed Kolenovsky / Associated Press)

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Muhammad Ali addressing the crowd before his heavyweight title victory over Leon Spinks in New Orleans in 1978.  (Keystone / Getty Images)

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Boxing legend Muhammad Ali, right, clowns around with Oscar De La Hoya while appearing together in New York on Dec. 2, 1997.  (Doug Kanter / Associated Press)

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Muhammad Ali watches as the flame climbs up to the Olympic torch while taking part in the opening ceremonies of the 1996 Atlanta Olympic Games.  (Doug Mills / Associated Press)

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Muhammad Ali acknowledges the cheers of the crowd during halftime of the gold-medal basketball game between the United States and Yugoslavia at the Atlanta Olympic Games on Aug. 3, 1996.  (Paul Morse / Los Angeles Times)

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Former heavyweight champion Muhammad Ali throws playful punch toward a photographer while sitting on a bus in front of Locke High School in December 1996.  (Ken Lubas / Los Angeles Times)

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Muhammad Ali, left, and George Foreman arrive at the Vanity Fair Oscar party in Los Angeles on March 24, 1997.  (E.J. Flynn / Associated Press)

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Boxing great Muhammad Ali, left, and heavyweight champion Evander Holyfield pose for the camera while attending the ESPY Awards in New York on Feb. 10, 1997.  (Timothy A. Clary / AFP / Getty Images)

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Muhammad Ali, right, and his daughter, boxer Laila Ali, pose for a picture during a celebrity roast for charity in Los Angeles on Nov. 16, 2000.  (Kevork Djansezian / Associated Press)

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President Bill Clinton presents boxing great Muhammad Ali with a Presidential Citizens Medal during a ceremony at the White House on Jan. 8, 2001.  (Ron Edmonds / Associated Press)

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Muhammad Ali stands with his wife, Lonnie, while waving to friends attending his 70th birthday celebration at the Muhammad Ali Center in Louisville, Ky., on Jan. 14, 2012.  (Mark Humphrey / Associated Press)

Some veteran fight watchers claim a case could be made that Norton beat Ali in all three of their meetings. Ali won the Forum fight by split-decision on Sept. 10, 1973. and the trilogy was capped by Ali’s 1976 unanimous-decision victory over Norton at Yankee Stadium

“Ali was so popular that it was like he started fights with two rounds in his favor,” Fraser said.

Two ringside judges at the Forum bout, John Thomas and George Latka, were split on the outcome, leaving referee Dick Young to give the deciding 12th round to Ali.

“[Legendary trainer] Eddie Futch was in Norton’s corner, and he thought they were well ahead, so I’d say Norton coasted in the 12th – Norton’s managers were so upset at Futch, they fired him and replaced him with Bill Slayton, a solid boxing guy who has a gym on South Broadway,” Fraser said.

Fraser said the fight was so anticipated it effectively sold itself with minimal publicity work needed by master promoter Ali, who trained at the LAX Marriott.

With closed-circuit sales added, Fraser said, Ali-Norton II earned $10 million.

The live gate was the largest in state history until Oscar De La Hoya’s 2000 loss to Shane Mosley at Staples Center.

Ali attended that fight, and as he was escorted to his ringside seat, the cheers of “Ali! Ali! Ali!” delivered chills and a lump in the throat.

Fraser said he’ll attempt to have Ali’s daughter, Laila, speak at the Oct. 22 event.

Saturday night, in an expected toe-to-toe battle at StubHub Center, World Boxing Council super-featherweight champion Francisco Vargas will make the first defense of the belt he won in the 2015 fight of the year when he meets rugged Mexican countryman Orlando Salido.

Vargas told his handlers he’s “absolutely” compelled to make the fight memorable as a tribute to Ali, as is Salido, who said “rest in peace” to Ali in a Saturday morning video sent to the Los Angeles Times by his manager.