Contemporary Business Law 8th Edition by Henry Cheeseman

Exercise 7

Anticipatory Repudiation Muhammad Ali (Ali), a professional heavyweight boxer, successfully defended his heavyweight boxing championship of the world by defeat­ing Ken Norton. Shortly after the fight, Ali held a press conference and, as he had done on several occasions before, announced his retirement from boxing. At that time, Ali had beaten every challenger except Duane Bobick, whom he had not yet fought. Subsequently, Madison Square Garden Boxing, Inc. (MSGB), a fight promoter, offered Ali $2.5 mil­lion if he would fight Bobick. Ali agreed, stating, "We are back in business again." MSGB and Ali signed a fighters' agreement, and MSGB paid Ali a $125,000 advance pay­ment. The fight was to take place in Madison Square Garden. Three months before the fight was to take place, Ali told MSGB that he was retiring from boxing and would not fight Bobick in February. Must MSGB wait until the date perfor­mance is due to sue Ali for breach of contract? Madison Square Garden Boxing , Inc. v. Muhammad Ali , 430 F.Supp. 679, Web 1977 U.S. Dist. Lexis 16101 (United States District Court for the Northern District of Illinois)