Muhammad Ali and his fights outside the rings

Cassius Marcellus Clay Jr.: 61 fights in the ring, 56 wins and only 5 defeats. The choice of the greatest boxer of all time is subjective to analysis, but everyone knows who was the greatest. Grandiose not only for all the knockouts and for his performances and striking phrases, but for being a synthesis in the fight for civil rights and a symbol of resistance against injustice.

When Cassius Marcellus Clay Jr. defeated Sonny Liston in 1964 and became the heavyweight world champion, he was only 22 years old, with an incendiary charisma and a fighting style that defied boxing norms.

Too fast for a man of his stature, he fought with his hands low, challenging punches and betting on reflexes and footwork to dominate opponents. But what would make him one of the most remarkable figures of the 20th century was not just the way he moved in the ring — but rather the way he turned every victory and public appearance into a political platform.

Shortly after winning the title, Clay announced that he had converted to Islam and adopted a new name, which would be marked in the history books: Muhammad Ali.

“Clay was the name of a white man. It was a slave name. I am no longer Clay. I am no longer a slave. So, now I am Muhammad Ali.” - he said in an interview with NBC.

By joining the Nation of Islam, an Afro-American religious and political movement led by Elijah Muhammad, Ali broke with the narrative of the “national” athlete who represented the flag of the United States. His conversion was also an act of refusal to the name directly inherited from American colonial history, reclaiming an identity that aligned with a pan-African and Muslim imagination.

The context as a whole was explosive. The civil rights movement was boiling, a period of intense social and political struggle, from the mid-1950s to the late 1960s, aimed at ending racial segregation and discrimination against African Americans.

Malcolm X, with whom Ali maintained friendship until his break with the Nation of Islam, became a central voice in a more radical discourse against white supremacy, and the Vietnam War was intensifying. In 1967, when he was drafted for military service, Ali refused to serve, stating: “No Viet Cong ever called me a nigger.” His objection was not only religious but deeply political, a repudiation of the hypocrisy of a country that denied him basic rights while demanding that he fight in the name of its flag.

On February 17, 1966, while training for a fight against Ernie Terrell - who would come to judge his name change shortly after -, Ali received the news that his draft status had changed from 1-Y (not fit for military draft) to 1-A (the top of the list).

Robert Lypsyte of the New York Times reported that Ali's first reaction was to ask why the local draft board had changed his draft status so drastically. He complained that he was being discriminated against and that, according to Ali, he had done more for the military and the Vietnam War by paying huge taxes on his fight earnings than he would ever do as a soldier.

The refusal cost him dearly at the time, as he was banned from boxing for 5 years, lost his world title, and spent three years without fighting at his physical and technical peak. He faced a lawsuit that would only be overturned in 1971 when the Supreme Court of the United States ruled in his favor. During this period, his figure solidified as an international symbol of resistance to war and racism.

The relationship with the media was always a parallel battle. During the 60s, much of the sports press portrayed him as arrogant, ungrateful, and dangerous. His habit of self-proclaiming as “the greatest” was interpreted as out-of-control vanity, but, in practice, it was a calculated strategy to challenge the racial stereotypes that expected to see humble, submissive, and grateful black athletes for their visibility. Ali understood that discourse was as powerful as his performances, and that declaring himself the best even before proving it in the ring was a way to break with the narrative of inferiority imposed on black men in the United States. It is worth noting that all this happened within a sport that has always moved millions of dollars in the United States, supported by an economic and media elite that largely rejected its ideals and did not hesitate to confront him publicly.

This confidence was not just a personal characteristic, but a political gesture. He told young black people to believe in their own strength, to not accept definitions imposed by white society. By adopting a provocative tone, Ali forced the media to deal with a unique type of athlete, who confronted the positions of everyone who opposed him. This behavior put him alongside other figures of the time who politicized their image, such as James Brown, Nina Simone, and Stokely Carmichael.

Outside the ring, his image circulated the world as a reference for global black movements. In Africa, he was received as a hero in newly independent countries.

His fight against George Foreman in Zaire, the “Rumble in the Jungle” of 1974, was broadcast to dozens of African countries as a symbol of affirmation and diasporic connection.

American media, on the other hand, took decades to reconstruct the narrative about Ali. At the height of the Vietnam War, he was portrayed as a threat to public order, only years later, with the historical detachment, he began to be celebrated as a national hero. This process of “domestication” of radical figures is common. Radicalism is paid off to preserve only the sympathetic image. But the Ali of the 60s and 70s was uncomfortable for the system.

His return to boxing in 1970 and the regaining of the world title against Foreman in Zaire transcended the sport. The fight was organized as a pan-African event, with music festivals and speeches that connected the African diaspora to the continent. Ali won using the “rope-a-dope” strategy, absorbing punches until wearing Foreman down.

Even weakened by Parkinson's, Ali remained an impactful figure. He attended political events, gave speeches, visited war zones, and participated in humanitarian missions. His presence carried immense symbolic strength. The proof that a weakened body can still be a political body, carrying years of struggle against a perverse side of the world.