RIP Muhammad Ali

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Stone Message

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I heard the sad news this morning as I went to make the early morning tea that Muhammad Ali had died in a Phoenix hospital after suffering breathing difficulties, probably due to the advanced state of the Parkinson's disease that had plagued him for many years.

I loved his rhetoric, his infectious enthusiasm and confidence. He was the ultimate showman and a true gentle giant.

Peter
 
He wasn't just a great showman, he was a great human.  Years ago, when my now daughters were flying with us to San Fran, Ali and his wife were on the same flight.  He was already in the slurred speech stage but he sent his wife up and asked if the girls would come to meet him.  He talked with both and gave them his autograph.  RIP in greatness.
 
RIP Muhammad Ali. What a loss  :'(  :'(  :'(

Kind regards,
Oliver
 
And one of those ironies of history that he is so beloved now.  If you watch the fights before he was stripped of the championship for refusing the draft, he was regularly roundly and soundly booed by the audience, hated for his militancy and social activism.  I think there was still hostility in the first few fights in the 70s after he was granted his fighting license again.  But the world finally caught up with him.  In the process of him becoming a beloved, public figure, though, there was something lost.  Not because of him personally, but that's just the nature of public mythologizing, which tends to round over the rough edges.  Like how MLK is often remembered now  as a figure of hope and optimism (I Have a Dream), rather than the genuine challenge he was to the power structure through his activism on poverty and the Vietnam War.

One of the treats of Youtube is that you can go back and watch all his fights, especially the ones from the 60s, and see that lightning quick jab snap multiple times into the opponent's face with stunning effect, all while Ali is moving backwards! 
 
I've got quite into boxing over the last few years. I watched a documentary recently about the boxing greats and he was something like I'd never seen before. He had morals,charm, humour yet was ruthless in the ring. I'm looking forward to watching his previous fights.
 
If you've got time to waste, here's a good page that ranks the top ten Ali fights and includes a video for each one.  My favorite is the Ernie Terrell fight in 67 -- it's hard to think of an opponent getting more dismantled than what happens to Terrell.  But Ali just continues in on him, refusing to knock him out but instead keeping him on his feet so he can continue the punishment for Terrell refusing to call him by his new name in the lead up to the fight:
http://indianexpress.com/article/sports/sport-others/muhammad-alis-ten-greatest-fights-2834548/

What is your favorite Ali fight?
 
So many but being British it has to be Ali v Cooper '63. If only the knockdown didn't happen right at the end of round who know what might have happend. Coopers skin was too soft and he cut so easy, their second fight Ali was near his peak and it was a clear no contest but the first was defiantly a classic for us Brits, even with Ali entering the ring with the Queen crown on.
 
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