Before there was Babe Ruth, there was “Ruthless.”
As New York/New Jersey prepares to host another in a long line of championship events with Super Bowl XLVIII between the Broncos and Seahawks on Sunday at MetLife Stadium, it’s worth remembering the first known champion crowned in the Big Apple among major sports.
The victor was a horse named “Ruthless,” who won the inaugural Belmont Stakes on June 19, 1867, at Jerome Park in The Bronx.
Since then, New York also has been the stage for the crowning of baseball, football, basketball and hockey champions, not to forget the winners of major golf and tennis tournaments and boxing titles.
Here are the top 10 championship events staged in the Big Apple as ranked by The Post:
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1. 1971 Ali-Frazier heavyweight championship fight
The “Fight of the Century” between unbeaten heavyweights Muhammad Ali and Joe Frazier played out in a circus-like atmosphere at Madison Square Garden. This one exceeded the hype, with Frazier winning by unanimous decision in 15 rounds. The loss was Ali’s first as a professional. Ali won a rematch three years later and then beat Frazier in the “Thrilla in Manila” in 1975.
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2. 1958 NFL Championship Game
Alan Ameche (bottom left) after scoring the game-winning touchdown. AP It’s still referred to as the “Greatest Game Ever Played” and credited for starting the NFL’s rise to dominance on the American sports landscape.
With 17 future Hall of Famers on the field at Yankee Stadium, the Colts beat the Giants 23-17 in the NFL’s first sudden-death overtime game. The game, which featured stars Johnny Unitas, Frank Gifford and Sam Huff, was viewed by an estimated 45 million people on NBC.
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3. 1970 NBA Finals
Willis Reed emerged from the tunnel at Madison Square Garden only moments before tipoff and sparked the Knicks’ 113-99 victory over the Lakers in Game 7. Reed was bothered by a leg injury and all indications were he wouldn’t play.
But after his surprise entrance, Reed made the first two baskets of the game, setting the tone in the Knicks’ romp.
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4. 1973 Belmont Stakes
Secretariat became horse racing’s first Triple Crown winner since 1948 by decimating the field at Belmont. Secretariat’s victory by 31 lengths set a track record, and his time of 2 minutes, 24 seconds was the fastest 1 ¹/₂ miles on dirt in history.
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5. 1977 World Series
Reggie Jackson hit three home runs on as many pitches in Game 6 at Yankee Stadium, sending the Yankees to an 8-4 victory over the Dodgers for their first world championship in 15 years. Babe Ruth was previously the only player to hit three home runs in a World Series game.
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6. 1986 World Series
Down to their final out in Game 6 at Shea Stadium, the Mets staged an improbable 10th-inning rally against the Red Sox that ended with Mookie Wilson’s grounder through Bill Buckner’s legs to score the winning run. The Mets won 8-5 in Game 7, with Jesse Orosco striking out Marty Barrett to begin a wild celebration.
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7. 1941 Louis-Conn heavyweight championship fight
AP With 54,487 watching at the Polo Grounds, Joe Louis knocked out Billy Conn in the 13th round to retain his heavyweight title. Conn, who was 25 pounds lighter than Louis, was leading on two of the judges’ scorecards through 12 rounds. But Conn tried to finish Louis in the 13th and instead got flattened.
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8. 2001 World Series
In the aftermath of the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks, Yankee Stadium hosted the middle games of a classic Series between the Yankees and Diamondbacks. President George W. Bush threw out the first pitch before Game 3, won by the Yankees. In Games 4 and 5, the Yankees won in their final at-bats. Luis Gonzalez ultimately beat Mariano Rivera in the ninth inning of Game 7 in Arizona with a broken-bat RBI single for the winning run.
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9. 1994 Stanley Cup Finals
The Rangers exorcised more than five decades worth of demons by beating the Canucks in Game 7 at Madison Square Garden. Mark Messier scored the Rangers’ final goal, on a second-period power play, leading the 3-2 victory. The Rangers celebrated their first championship since 1940.
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10. 1969 World Series
Pandemonium breaks out at Shea Stadium after the final out of the World Series clincher. AP The “Miracle Mets” completed an improbable run by winning in five games against a formidable Orioles team. In the sixth inning of the clincher at Shea Stadium, Mets manager Gil Hodges argued a pitch hit Cleon Jones in the foot, and had the shoe polish on the ball to prove it. Jones was awarded first base and Donn Clendenon’s homer in the inning got the Mets’ initial runs in a 5-3 victory.
Honorable mention: 1962 NFL Championship Game (Packers defeated Giants 16-7 at Yankee Stadium); 1980 U.S. Open men’s final (John McEnroe defeated Bjorn Borg in five sets); 1984 U.S. Open women’s final (Martina Navratilova defeated Chris Evert in three sets).