Complex sentence: Liston failed to live up to his fearsome reputation in an unsuccessful defense of the title against Cassius Clay (Muhammad Ali); underworld connections and an early death--along with his unrecorded date of birth--added to the enigma.
Split into simpler sentences: Liston failed to live up to his fearsome reputation in an unsuccessful defense of the title against Cassius Clay (Muhammad Ali). Underworld connections and an early death--along with his unrecorded date of birth--added to the enigma.