It's 1974. Muhammad Ali thought by many to be past his prime and is 32. George Foreman is a decade younger and the world's champion. Promoter Don King wants to earn a name for himself also offers both fighters five thousand dollars apiece to fight one another, if they accept, King has to think of the amount of money. He discovers that a willing backer at Mobutu Sese Suko, the dictator of Zaire, and the"Rumble in the Jungle" is place, including a musical festival featuring some of America's top black actors, such as James Brown and B.B. King.