Words simply cannot do justice to the man that was well and truly the greatest of all time. Muhammad Ali was the definition of an underdog, a fighter, a believer, a warrior, a poet, and a champion! He was everything moulded into one.
Starting off with his dancing feet and ending each round with his arms raised high up, yelling "I am the greatest". There was something unique about this 21 year old who walked into the arena against then champion, Sunny Liston. Nobody believed he could do it. Nobody except himself! Weeks before the much awaited fight, he would address the masses by simply saying:
"If you wanna lose your money, bet against Sonny".
As it turned out, Muhammad Ali, then Cassius Clay, not only won the fight but knocked Sonny out in the starting of the 7th round. It was at this time that he labelled himself as "The Greatest". But this was literally, only just the beginning.
Muhammad Ali stands over Sonny Liston after knocking him out in May 1965
He would go on to become known by all as "The Greatest" and at his peak in the 1970s was amongst the most recognizable faces on Earth.
Ali was at the peak of his professional powers after knocking out Zora Folley in New York on March 22, 1967. He battered Folley throughout and stopped him in the seventh round. After the battle, Folley shared his thoughts:
"The right hands Ali hit me with just had no business landing – but they did. They came from nowhere… He's smart. The trickiest fighter I've seen. He's had 29 fights and acts like he's had a hundred. He could write the book on boxing, and anyone that fights him should be made to read it first."
1967-03-22 : Muhammad Ali 211½ lbs beat Zora Folley 202½ lbs by KO at 1:48 in round 7 of 15
But Ali's career came to a sudden stand still after that fight when he refused to get inducted into the U.S army for the Vietnam War by simply stating:
"Shoot them for what? They never called me nigger. They never lynched me. They never put dogs on me. They didn't rob me of my nationality, rape and kill my mother and father. What do I want to shoot them for, for what? Why do I want to go shoot them, poor little people and babies and children and women? How can I shoot them? Just take me to jail."
Soon after this, on the 20th of June, 1967, Ali was stripped off his title, fined $10,000 and jailed for 4 years, a time, according to experts when Ali was at his peak. The Supreme Court would, however, reverse Ali's conviction in 1971 by an 8-0 vote. But by then, Ali was already back in the ring.
Ali soon beat Oscar Bonavena in the 15th round of his bout and now, Ali was ready to face the undefeated Joe Frazier.
A few months later, Ali was about to have the fight of his life in New York. It was an outstanding fight, but Frazier's pressure was enough to put Ali in doubt. He floored Ali in the 15th round with one of the most famous and perfectly executed left hooks in boxing history, sealing the fight, and now, for the first time in his life, Muhammad Ali, was knocked out! But he never gave up, trained hard and came back even stronger. Ali would have his days against Frazier, defeating him twice, in a non-title bout on Jan. 28, 1974, in New York, and for the heavyweight title in Manila on Oct. 1, 1975. That was a fight for the ages, remembered as one of a handful of the best in boxing history, "The Thrilla' in Manilla".
'The Thrilla' in Manilla'
Ali wasn't nearly the same fighter after that. He'd taken a fearsome pounding in his second career, after his return from exile. His three fights with Frazier, his 1974 fight with George Foreman in Africa and his 1980 bout with Larry Holmes were particularly brutal.
Soon, Muhammad Ali bowed out of boxing owing to Parkinson's disease. And soon, once the most outrageous trash talker in sports history, was largely muted for the last quarter century of his life.
On 4th June 2016, Muhammad Ali lost his Final battle and breathed his last leaving millions in tears. There will undoubtedly be no sportsman like Ali ever again. It was a pleasure watching him fight not only for himself but for the masses! Muhammad Ali, you will never be forgotten! REST IN POWER.