The Greatest: Muhammad Ali: Part II

Mainstream sportswriters wanted Cassius Clay to remain safely tucked away in a niche they found comfortable.

Clay attracted a lot of young black people who were becoming disillusioned with the civil rights movement.

Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.’s, philosophy of nonviolence for blacks seemed futile against people bent on committing violent acts against black churches and black children.

His references to himself as “beautiful” inspired young African Americans and became the impetus of the “Black is Beautiful” movement.

Some people were calling for an investigation of the substance that had blinded Clay. (It was probably the astringent used to stop the bleeding from Liston’s face that accidentally found its way onto Liston’s gloves and into Clay’s eyes.)

He also knew that he would lose much of the popularity he had enjoyed as a nominal Christian.

It was felt by many whites and blacks that he had been duped into becoming a Muslim by the Nation of Islam and that the organization would use Ali as a symbol of racial hatred.

The racial undertones that have always been present in America have often affected the fight game.

Young men identified with the handsome, charismatic youth in much the same way they did with Malcolm X.

There was talk within the black community of a coming battle between various factions of the Muslim movement.

While Liston looked despondent and dour, Ali, with his thirty-four-inch waistline and powerful arms, seemed to have taken on the role of intimidator.

While Liston looked despondent and dour, Ali, with his thirty-four-inch waistline and powerful arms, seemed to have taken on the role of intimidator.

Liston jabbed, threw some hard punches that didn’t land on the elusive target, and tried to maneuver Ali into the ropes.

In an October 1965 article in Sports Illustrated, Patterson commented, “I have nothing but contempt for the Black Muslims and that for which they stand. The image of a Black Muslim as the world heavyweight champion disgraces the sport and the nation. Cassius Clay must be beaten and the Black Muslims’ scourge removed from boxing.”

In an October 1965 article in Sports Illustrated, Patterson commented, “I have nothing but contempt for the Black Muslims and that for which they stand. The image of a Black Muslim as the world heavyweight champion disgraces the sport and the nation. Cassius Clay must be beaten and the Black Muslims’ scourge removed from boxing.”

Ali claimed that he had no racial animosity against anyone, no matter their race or religion.

Young people called “flower” children in the streets of San Francisco rocked to the raucous sounds of Janis Joplin in the Fillmore West, and marched the streets in protest against the Vietnam War.

But the peace movement had its detractors. To those Americans not used to questioning what their government did, protesting the war was close to treason.

The news from Vietnam was not good. Young Americans were being killed at an alarming rate in a war that it seemed we could not win. The news from the civil rights frontlines looked just as bleak. For every victory there was a setback.

The problem for many Americans was not that blacks were forced into second-class citizenship but that they made themselves visible by protesting that deprivation of rights.

Terrell, a rangy heavyweight, had little chance against Ali.

On January 24, 1964, he was ordered to the Armed Forces Induction Center in Coral Gables, Florida, where he took a qualifying examination.

Ali appealed the classification and also asked for status as a conscientious objector, or “CO” status. Conscientious objectors were those who, due to their religious or moral beliefs, could not participate in military service.

Because Joe Louis fought exhibitions and helped raise money for the government during World War II, and because Sugar Ray Robinson had been assigned to what the army called Special Services, Ali was privately assured that he would be used only to raise the morale of troops.

Within weeks of Muhammad Ali's conviction and the removal of his championship status, each state revoked his boxing license.

Many African Americans also did not want to risk alienating President Lyndon B. Johnson by opposing the war in Vietnam.

King, an advocate of integration and a man who pleaded for acceptance of all people regardless of skin color, who advocated nonviolence, was brutally gunned down.

The grim statistics coming from the military showed large numbers of men being killed and wounded in a seemingly endless escapade.

He was jailed for nearly a week in what appeared to be a purely vindictive exercise.

He lacked the education and sophistication to assume a national role, but he was a clear thinker and many of his views would one day be accepted.

Where, two and a half years earlier, prominent blacks had distanced themselves from Ali, they now flocked to this first fight after his exile.

It was fitting that Atlanta, with its affluent black population, would be the site of Ali’s comeback. Few American cities had as much black political clout or savvy.

It was fitting that Atlanta, with its affluent black population, would be the site of Ali’s comeback. Few American cities had as much black political clout or savvy.

In 1967 Ali had upset many blacks by speaking for separation of the races while Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., had spoken so eloquently for integration, but King’s death at the hands of a white assassin made even the middle class wonder if integration was worth the struggle.

While the money is virtually nonexistent for amateur and beginning professional fights, the punches are just as real.

It’s clearly desirable for a promoter, trying to attract viewers, to say that the fighters are vying for so many millions of dollars—a typical figure is $9 million to the champion, and $5.5 million to the challenger.

Muhammad Ali, with his flamboyant style, his charm, and even the controversy swirling around him, brought a new level of interest to the sport and dramatically changed the income levels of boxing matches.

It was the new media, television and its sponsors, that provided the increased revenue that all fighters could hope for in the future.

The image of the impending battle flickers through his mind, and he visualizes himself winning, punishing his opponent more than he is punished.

But even if he was convinced that he could win the fight, convinced beyond the hype and the false bravado he offered to the press, he must still have assessed how much suffering he could bear to carry it off.