Muhammad Ali (b.January 17, 1942) born Cassius Marcellus Clay Jr. in Louisville, Kentucky, nicknamed "The Greatest", is a retired American boxer. He is considered by many to be the greatest heavyweight boxer of all time, as well as one of the world's most famous individuals, renowned the world over for his boxing and political activism. In 1999, he was crowned "Sportsman of the Century" by Sports Illustrated, and is considered by many to be one of the greatest athletes of the 20th century.

Early boxing career

He was known as Cassius Clay. He was only twelve years old when he parked his bicycle in front of a Louisville department store. When he learned that his bicycle had been stolen, he approached a police officer named Joe Elsby Martin, Sr. and told him that he wanted to "whoop" the thief. Martin, who was the coach of the the Louisville city boxing program, told Ali that if he intended to "whoop" someone, he should learn to fight. The next day, Ali appeared at Louisville's Columbia Gym and began boxing lessons with Martin. Martin taught Ali how to "float like a butterfly, sting like a bee." As an Olympic coach, Martin accompanied Ali to the Rome Olympics in 1960 where Ali won a Gold Medal in the light heavyweight division.

Ali had a highly unorthodox style for a heavyweight boxer. He carried his hands at his sides, rather than the normal boxing style of carrying the hands high to defend the face. Instead, he relied on his extraordinary reflexes and footwork to keep him away from his opponents' blows. In Louisville, October 29, 1960, Cassius Clay won his first professional fight. He won a six-round decision over Tunney Hunsaker , who was the police chief of Fayetteville, West Virginia. From 1960 to 1963, the young fighter amassed a record of 19-0, with 15 knockouts. He defeated such boxers as Tony Esperti, Jim Robinson, Donnie Fleeman, Alonzo Johnson, George Logan, Willi Besmanoff, and Lamar Clark (who had won his previous 40 bouts by knockout), Doug Jones, and Henry Cooper. Among Clay's more impressive victories were against Sonny Banks (who knocked him down earlier in the bout), Alejandro Lavorante, and Archie Moore (a boxing legend who had won over 200 previous fights). Cassius became the number one contender for Sonny Liston's title. Liston was greatly feared, and some have said that he was the Mike Tyson of his era. Almost no one gave the young boxer a chance of beating Liston. The date was fixed for February 25, 1964; during the weigh-in, the boisterous Ali declared that he would "float like a butterfly and sting like a bee," and to sum up his defense he quoted, "Your hands can't hit what your eyes can't see."

First title fight

Main article: Ali versus Liston

Clay, however, had a plan. Misreading Clay's exuberance as nervousness, Liston was over-confident, and unprepared for any result but a quick stoppage. In the opening rounds, Clay's speed kept him away from Liston's powerful head and body shots, as he used his height and reach advantage to effectively beat Liston to the punch with his jab. By the third, Clay was clearly on top, and had opened a cut under Liston's eye. Liston regained some ground in the fourth, as Clay was blinded by a foreign substance. It is unknown whether this was something used to close Liston's cuts, or applied to Liston's gloves for a nefarious purpose. Partially-sighted, Clay passively sought to escape Liston's offensive. He was able to keep out of range until his sweat cleaned the ointment from his eyes, responding with a flurry of combinations near the end of the fifth round. By the sixth, he was looking for a finish and dominated Liston. Then Liston shocked the world when he didn't come out for the seventh round to continue the fight; he later claimed to have injured his shoulder. It is widely accepted that Liston knew he was beaten and gave up, but knew he had to give a legitimate reason for the rematch clause in the their contract to hold, ensuring a second fight and a chance for redemption. Clay overcame all odds to become heavyweight champion of the world.

Cassius Marcellus Clay Jr. changes his name to Muhammad Ali

Following his ascension to champion, he also became famous for other reasons: he revealed that he was a member of the Nation of Islam (often called the Black Muslims at the time) and changed his name to Cassius X, discarding his surname as a symbol of his ancestors' enslavement, as had been done by other Nation members such as Malcolm X. He was soon given the name Muhammad Ali by the leader of the Nation, Elijah Muhammad, who revealed the name to Ali as "his true name," although only a few journalists (most notably Howard Cosell) accepted it at that time. The adoption of this name symbolized his new identity as a Muslim, and he retained the name even after his later conversion to Sunni Islam.

Vietnam puts a pause in Ali's career

In 1964, Ali failed the Armed Forces qualifying test because his writing and spelling skills were subpar. However, in early 1966, the tests were revised and Ali was reclassified 1A. He refused to serve in the American army during the Vietnam War as a conscientious objector, because "War is against the teachings of the Holy Qur'aan. I'm not trying to dodge the draft. We are supposed to take part in no wars unless declared by Allah or The Messenger. We don't take part in Christian wars or wars of any unbelievers." Ali also famously said "I ain't got no quarrel with those Vietcong" and "no Vietcong ever called me nigger." Ali was basically banned from fighting in the United States and forced to accept bouts abroad for most of 1966. From his bout with Patterson in November of 1965, to his final defense against Zora Folley in March of 1967, he defended his title nine times. No other heavyweight champion in history has fought so much in such a short period. Ali pounded out a fifteen round decision against tough Canadian George Chuvalo (who was never knocked down in his career), he then went to England and defeated Henry Cooper and Brian London by knockout. Ali's next defense was against German southpaw Karl Mildenberger (who was the first German to fight for the title since Max Schmeling). In one of the tougher fights of his life, Ali finally stopped his opponent in Round 12. Ali then returned to the United States in November of 1966 to fight Cleveland "Big Cat" Williams in the Houston Astrodome. Williams had one of the highest knockout percentages of any heavyweight and was thought by many to be one of the finest boxers who never won a title. Many expected he would give the young champion a tough fight but Ali destroyed him in three rounds knocking him down several times. The champion returned to a Houston boxing ring in January of 1967 to fight Ernie Terrell in one of the uglier fights in boxing. Terrell had angered Ali by calling him Clay and the champion vowed to punish him for this insult. Terrell suffered fifteen rounds of brutal punishment, but Ali refused to knock him out. He kept shouting at his opponent "Whats my name, Uncle Tom...whats my name". The press called this cruel and inhuman and the audience booed Ali for his tactics. Many boxing analysts have called Ali's fight against Zora Folley at Madison Square Garden on March 22, 1967 to be him at his brilliant best. Every punch he threw in this fight was sharp and on target until he knocked Folley out in Round 7. Some have speculated how far Ali could have gone had he been allowed to fight for the period of two and a half years afterward.

Ali's actions in refusing military service and aligning himself with the Nation of Islam, made him a lightning rod of controversy, turning the outspoken but popular former champion into one of that era's most recognizable and controversial figures. Appearing at rallies with Nation of Islam leader Elijah Muhammad and declaring his allegiance to him at a time when mainstream America viewed them with suspicion - if not actual hostility - made Ali a target of outrage, and suspicion as well. Ali seemed at times to even provoke such reactions, with viewpoints that wavered from support for civil rights to outright support of separatism.

Near the end of 1967, Ali was stripped of his title by the professional boxing commission and would not be allowed to fight professionally for more than three years. He was also convicted for refusing induction into the U.S. Army. Over the course of those years in exile, Ali fought to appeal his conviction. He stayed in the public spotlight and supported himself by giving speeches primarily at rallies on college campuses that opposed the Vietnam War.

In 1970 Ali was allowed to fight again and in late 1971 the Supreme Court reversed his conviction.

In 1969, Ali fought Rocky Marciano in a computerized fight, known as, The Super Fight. This fight was under the promotion of Murry Woroner, a Miami boxing promoter, who ran a fantasy boxing radio show, filled with fantasy matches, with the blow by blow by Murry Woroner, himself.

The comeback

In 1970, Ali was finally able to get a boxing license. With the help of a State Senator, he was granted a license to box in Georgia. In October of 1970, he returned to stop Jerry Quarry on a cut after three rounds. Shortly after the Quarry fight, the New York State Supreme Court ruled that Ali was unjustly denied a boxing license. Once again able to fight in New York, he fought Oscar Bonavena at Madison Square Garden in December of 1970. Ali stopped Bonavena in the 15th round, paving the way for a title fight against Joe Frazier.

The Fight of the Century

Main article: Fight of the Century

Ali and Frazier fought each other on March 8, 1971 at Madison Square Garden. This fight, known as The Fight of the Century, is one of the most famous and was one of the most eagerly anticipated bouts of all time, since it featured two skilled, undefeated fighters, both of whom had reasonable claims to the heavyweight crown. The fight lived up to the hype, and Frazier punctuated his victory by flooring Ali with a hard left hook in the final round. He won by points. Frank Sinatra - unable to acquire a ringside seat - took photos of the match for Life Magazine. Legendary boxing announcer Don Dunphy and actor and boxing aficionado Burt Lancaster called the action for the broadcast, which reached millions of people.

In 1973, Ali split two bouts with Ken Norton (in the bout that Ali lost to Norton, Ali suffered a broken jaw, but refused to quit), before beating Frazier on points in their 1974 rematch, to earn another title shot.

Rocky

On March 24, 1975, Ali fought Chuck Wepner in Cleveland, a fight that was to inspire the Academy Award winning movie "Rocky". Ironically, however, it was Ali's opponent who provided the inspiration for history's most famous fictional pugilist. Wepner was a journeyman fighter who had been earning his living as a liquor salesman and security guard. Wepner had been dubbed "The Bayonne Bleeder" and, although he was ranked, an unknown journalist remarked that "if he is the number eight contender, a punching bag must be number seven." Wepner, however, trained for two months and somehow survived 15 rounds with Ali before losing on a technical knock-out. Sylvester Stallone saw the match on television and the concept of Rocky Balboa -- an unknown club fighter who goes 15 rounds with the heavyweight champion -- was born.

Final Comeback and Retirement

That retirement was short-lived, however, and on October 2, 1980, he challenged Larry Holmes for the WBC's version of the world Heavyweight title. Looking to set another record, as the first boxer to win the Heavyweight title four times, Ali lost by technical knockout in round eleven, when Dundee would not let him come out for the round. The Holmes fight, promoted as "The Last Hurrah", was a fight many fans and experts view with disdain, because it was a fight that saw a "deteriorated version" of Ali. Holmes was Ali's sparring partner when Holmes was a budding fighter; thus, some viewed the result of the fight as a symbolic "passing of the torch." Holmes even admitted later that, although he dominated the fight, he held his punches back a bit out of sheer respect for his idol, and former employer. It was revealed after the fight that Ali had been examined at the Mayo Clinic, and the results were shocking. He had admitted to tingling in his hands, and slurring of his speech. The exam revealed he actually had a hole in the membrane of his brain. However, Don King withheld this report, and allowed the fight to go on.

Despite the apparent finality of his loss to Holmes and his increasingly suspect medical condition, Ali would fight one more time. On December 11, 1981, he fought rising contender and future world champion Trevor Berbick, in what was billed as "The Drama in the Bahamas." Because Ali was widely viewed as a damaged fighter, few American venues expressed much interest in hosting the bout, and few fans expressed much interest in attending or watching it. Compared to the mega-fights Ali fought in widely known venues earlier in his career, the match took place in virtual obscurity, in Nassau. Although Ali performed marginally better against Berbick than he had against Holmes fourteen months earlier, he still lost a 10-round unanimous decision to Berbick, who at 27 was twelve years younger.

Following this loss, Ali retired permanently in 1981, with a career record of 56 wins (37 by knockout) and 5 losses.

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