Muhammad Ali

Muhammad Ali (born Cassius Marcellus Clay Jr., January 17, 1942 in Louisville, Kentucky, U.S.) is a retired American boxer and three-time World Heavyweight Champion. As an amateur, he won a gold medal in the light heavyweight division at the 1960 Summer Olympics in Rome. As a professional, he became the first person to win the lineal heavyweight championship three times.

In 1999, Ali was crowned "Sportsman of the Century" by Sports Illustrated and "Sports Personality of the Century" by the BBC.

Ali changed his name from Cassius Clay to Muhammad Ali after joining the Nation of Islam in 1964, subsequently converting to Sunni Islam in 1975 and later Sufism.In 1967, Ali refused to be inducted into the U.S. military based on his religious beliefs and opposition to the war in Vietnam. He was arrested and found guilty on draft evasion charges, stripped of his boxing title, and his boxing license was suspended. He was not imprisoned but did not fight again for nearly four years while his appeal worked its way up to the U.S. Supreme Court.

Ali was well known for his fighting style, which he described as "float like a butterfly, sting like a bee". He was involved in several historic boxing matches, including three with rival Joe Frazier and one with George Foreman, whom he beat by knockout to win the world heavyweight title for the second time. Though he seemed to be Naughty with words but i must admit he would have been a great poet.

here are some of his poetry before any fight


po 1
Clay swings with his left, Clay swings with his right,
Look at young Cassius carry the fight.
Liston keeps backing, but there's not enough room,
It's a matter of time till Clay lowers the boom.
Liston is still rising, now Clay lands with a right,
What a beautiful swing, and the punch raises the Bear clean out of the ring.
Liston is still rising and the ref wears a frown,
For he can't start counting till Sonny goes down.
Now Liston is disappearing from view,
The crowd is going frantic,
But radar stations have picked him up,
Somewhere over the Atlantic.
Who would have thought when they came to the fight?
That they'd witness the launching of a human satellite.
Yes the crowd did not dream, when they put up the money,
That they would see a total eclipse of the Sonny.

Poem composed prior to his match with Sonny Liston, in 1963


po2
While I'm talking to you I'm thinking up the greatest short poem of all time. This poem tells how it feels to be great as I am: Me — wheee!

In response to the question "Who writes your stuff?" in 1963,


po3
This is the legend of Cassius Clay,
The most beautiful fighter in the world today.
He talks a great deal, and brags indeed-y,
Of a muscular punch that's incredibly speed-y.
The fistic world was dull and weary, but with a champ like Liston, things had to be dreary.
Then someone with color and someone with dash, brought fight fans are runnin' with Cash.
This brash young boxer is something to see and the heavyweight championship is his destiny.
This kid's got a left, this kid's got a right, if he hit you once, you're asleep for the night.

I Am The Greatest (1964)


po4
I knew I had him in the first round. Almighty God was with me. I want everyone to bear witness, I am the greatest! I'm the greatest thing that ever lived. I don't have a mark on my face, and I upset Sonny Liston, and I just turned twenty-two years old. I must be the greatest. I showed the world. I talk to God everyday. I shook up the world, I'm the king of the world. You must listen to me. I am the greatest! I can't be beat!

After defeating Sonny Liston for the first time (25 February 1964)

po5
I think Terrell will catch hell at the sound of the bell.
He's going around saying that he's a championship-fighter,
but when he meets me he fall 20 pound lighter.
He thinks that he's the reall heavy weight champ
but when he meets me, he'll just be a tramp
Now I'm not sayin' just to be funny, but I'm fightin' Ernie because he needs the money.

About Ernie Terrell before their February 1967 boxing match

po6
Ain't no reason for me to kill nobody in the ring, unless they deserve it.

Comment after the match with Jimmy Ellis was stopped by the referee in the twelfth round (July 1971)


po7
I never thought of losing, but now that it's happened, the only thing is to do it right. That's my obligation to all the people who believe in me. We all have to take defeats in life.

Statement after losing his fight to Ken Norton (1973-03-31)



po8
Last night I had a dream, When I got to Africa,
I had one hell of a rumble.
I had to beat Tarzan’s behind first,
For claiming to be King of the Jungle.
For this fight, I’ve wrestled with alligators,
I’ve tustled with a whale.
I done handcuffed lightning
And put thunder in jail.
You know I’m bad.
I have murdered a rock,
I’ve injured a stone, and hospitalized a brick.
I’m so bad, I make medicine sick.
I’m so fast, man,
I can run through a hurricane and don't get wet.
When George Foreman meets me,
He’ll pay his debt.
I can drown the drink of water, and kill a dead tree.
Wait till you see Muhammad Ali.

A poem about his match with George Foreman, known as the Rumble in the Jungle (1974)

po9
Why should they ask me to put on a uniform and go 10,000 miles from home and drop bombs and bullets on Brown people in Vietnam while so-called Negro people in Louisville are treated like dogs and denied simple human rights? No I’m not going 10,000 miles from home to help murder and burn another poor nation simply to continue the domination of white slave masters of the darker people the world over. This is the day when such evils must come to an end. I have been warned that to take such a stand would cost me millions of dollars. But I have said it once and I will say it again. The real enemy of my people is here. I will not disgrace my religion, my people or myself by becoming a tool to enslave those who are fighting for their own justice, freedom and equality. If I thought the war was going to bring freedom and equality to 22 million of my people they wouldn’t have to draft me, I’d join tomorrow. I have nothing to lose by standing up for my beliefs. So I’ll go to jail, so what? We’ve been in jail for 400 years.

As quoted in Redemption Song: Muhammad Ali and the Spirit of the Sixties

PO10
Spirituality is recognizing the divine light that is within us all. It doesn't belong to any particular religion; it belongs to everyone.

PO11
I set out on a journey of love, seeking truth, peace and understanding. l am still learning. My soul has grown over the years, and some of my views have changed. As long as I am alive, I will continue to try to understand more because the work of the heart is never done.




PO12
To make America the greatest is my goal,
So I beat the Russians, and I beat the Pole,
and for the USA won the medal of gold.
Italians said: "You're Greater than the Cassius of old´´.
We like your name, we like your game,
So make Rome your home if you will.
I said I appreciate your kind hospitality,
But the USA is my country still,
'Cause they're waiting to welcome me in Louisville.

Poem written after winning the gold medal in the 1960 Olympic Summer Games in Rome, Italy

PO13
Since I won't let the critics seal my fate, they
keep hollering I'm full of hate.
But they don't really hurt me none, 'cause
I'm doing good and having fun.
"Still the Greatest",

BUT

There live a great man named Joe
who was belittled by a loudmouth foe.
While his rival would taunt and tease
Joe silently bore the stings.
And then fought like gladiator in the ring.

For every struggle that Joe survived,
For every dispute he endured, to rise,
Joe will go down in history
as a model for champions to come.
While Frazier was a man of few words,
Ali was a world of mouth,
but he found his place in history.
Now his heart can express him well.
Joe Frazier was a silent warrior,
whom Ali silently admired.
One could not rise without the other.

"The Silent Warrior", dedicated to Late Joe Frazier and his family.