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Every so often, an athlete comes along who is truly larger than life. Someone who can captivate the people with not only their skill and dedication to perfecting their craft, but also with their personality. In basketball, of course, we’ve seen guys like Michael Jordan and LeBron James become so much more than just players on the court. Serena Williams’ impact extends well beyond the world of tennis, and, love him or hate him, Tom Brady has become a figurehead of the NFL. But there is no athlete who has been more influential in sports and beyond than the great Muhammad Ali.
Ali is not only widely considered the greatest boxer to ever step into the ring, but he also exuded more swagger and charisma than any other professional athlete ever. He talked a big game, but he always backed it up. He was as polarizing as he was endearing; whether you loved or hated him, you had to respect him. Ali’s death in 2016 not only left a void in the boxing world, but in other worlds, too.
In honor of the two year anniversary of his passing (June 3), it’s important that we not forget all of the things that made him such a sports and cultural icon. As dedicated as Ali was to boxing, he was just as dedicated to speaking his mind on social justice issues and standing up for what he believed in. Even after being stripped of his world heavyweight title and having his boxing license suspended for refusing to be drafted into the U.S. military, he never backed down on his values. His strength was always on display, both inside and outside of the ring
Muhammad Ali’s life has been well documented, but there are some important tidbits that may not be known by everyone. Here is our list of 25 things you may not have known about Muhammad Ali.
He called turning his back on Malcolm X, "one of the mistakes that I regret most in my life."
The falling out happened in 1964 in Ghana, where Ali and Malcolm were both touring. Malcolm had just separated himself from Elijah Muhammad, who Ali had sided with. They crossed paths, but Ali delivered the fade when Malcolm approached him.
His favorite meal was baked chicken, dressing, green peas, macaroni and cheese, spinach, and hot buttered rolls.
Now we're hungry. Southern cooking >>>
Ali said the punches he took during his boxing career had nothing to do with his case of Parkinson's disease.
Said Ali on the matter: "No boxer in the history of boxing has had Parkinson's. There's no injury in my brain that suggests that the illness came from boxing."
His daugther, Laila Ali, went undefeated as a professional boxer with a record of 24-0.
Ali actually spoke out against female boxing in 1978 when he said, "women are not made to be hit in the breast, and face like that." That didn't stop Laila from following in her father's footsteps as a boxer, though.
He knocked out Superman in a DC Comics 1978 comic book, 'Superman vs. Muhammad Ali.'
Quick plot description: An advanced race of aliens wants to destroy the Earth, but gives the planet a chance. If Earth's greatest fighter can defeat their alien champion, they'll spare the planet. Superman volunteers to defend Earth, but the aliens protest that he's not technically human or from Earth. As a compromise, Ali, as humanity's greatest figher, challenges Superman to fight, with the winner moving on to battle the aliens. Ali knocks out Superman and moves on to predictably save the planet.
Through his father's Irish and English ancestry, he's related to General George Patton and Katie Couric.
He's related to Robert E. Lee, too, but fuck that guy.
He modeled his outlandish and abrasive fighting persona after professional wrestler Gorgeous George.
Ali loved Gorgeous George's boasting and the effect it had on the crowd.
Ali almost had to have his legs amputated after his MMA-style bout against Antonio Inoki in 1976.
Ali earned $6 million for the fight, but it was declared a sham by both parties after the bout. Inoki crouched around Ali and kicked at him, only allowing Ali to throw six punches. Inoki felt like Ali wasn't a real fighter for only trying to punch, while Ali thought that Inoki wasn't a real fighter for standing up to him. Ali had to spend two weeks in the hospital recovering from the subsequent blood clots, and never fully regained his mobility.
Immediately after Sonny Liston agreed to fight him for the first time, Ali drove a bus (with press in tow) with the words "Liston Must Go In Eight" on it to Liston's home at 3 a.m.
Floyd Mayweather Jr.'s slick talk and Adrien Broner's mouth have nothing on Ali's moves.
He knew he had a "chance" to become a World Champion after winning boxing's Golden Gloves in 1960.
Ali certainly took it. He became heavyweight champion of the world four years later, after defeating Sonny Liston.
Despite all of the bragging and intimidation tactics, he was "scared to death" in the lead-up to his first fight against Sonny Liston.
Typical bully behavior. The bully is always insecure on the inside, just like a boisterous Ali was back then. He had no reason to be, though—he beat Liston by a technical knockout in six rounds.
From age 25 to 29 (the prime of any athlete's career), he was inactive due to his ongoing Supreme Court case.
After he was arrested for refusing to enter the draft for the Vietnam War, all state boxing and athletic commissions suspended his boxing licenses. While his case went to an appeals court and later the Supreme Court, public opinion turned against the war, and Ali became a popular speaker at colleges.
He was married four times, and had nine children by six women.
Ali was married in 1964, 1967, and 1977. Before his death, he had been married to Lonnie Ali since November 19, 1986 for nearly 30 years, and they adopted one son together.
While banned from the boxing world, he starred in a Broadway musical that ran for one week.
Big Time Buck White centered around Ali as a black militant addressing a black power political group.
His album, 'I Am The Greatest!' was released by Columbia Records before he was even a contender for Sonny Liston.
Now that's cocky.
The NSA spied on him during the Vietnam War.
Ali, Martin Luther King Jr., and 1,650 other individuals had their phones and cables tapped between 1967-1973.
He returned to boxing in 1970 thanks to a loophole.
The state of Georgia had no organized boxing commission, allowing the city of Atlanta to grant him a boxing license. It was a triumphant return, too; he knocked out Jerry Quarry in three rounds.
He won the World Heavyweight Championship for the first time in 1964 and again in 1978.
His trainer, Angelo Dundee, described how the boxer who won in 1964 (Cassius Clay) was vastly different than the one in 1974 (Muhammad Ali): "Clay was speed, harmony in motion, an extraordinary sight to see. It seemed impossible to hit him. Ali, the guy that came back after his inactivity, was more flat-footed; he had to go in and fight and take more punishment." It remains the largest gap between Championships in Heavyweight history.
He used to practice Sunni Islam, but eventually embraced Sufi Islam.
Said his daughter Hana Yasmeen Ali on her father's shift in beliefs: "My father is very spiritual—more spiritual now than he is religious. It was important for him to be very religious and take the stands he did in earlier years. It was a different time."
Only Michael Jordan has more 'Sports Illustrated' covers than him.
Those two would definitely be the first faces carved in a hypothetical Mount Rushmore of Sports.
Ali could still communicate despite his Parkinson's.
Ali struggled every so often with his speech, but his daughter said "it [wasn't] as bad as people might think."
He and his family personally approached Will Smith to star in his 2001 biopic 'Ali.'
Will Smith had some nerve, but his reasoning was very respectful: "Intellectually, I didn't feel that I possessed what it took to become Muhammad Ali." Director Michael Mann eventually had to sit Smith down and lay out a concrete plan to get him on board.
His reign as the "universal" world heavyweight champion from 1974 to 1978 is the third longest in boxing history.
Joe Louis held the title from 1937-1949, and Rocky Marciano held it from 1952-1956, putting Ali in great company.