I was a teenager when young Cassius Clay burst on the scene whooping the big old ugly bear Sonny Liston. In those days not everyone was head over heels with the now deceased Muhammad Ali but I was always a HUGE fan and often taken to task over it even by my own father, a USMC Major.
Certainly Ali was a lightning rod with his style...his conversion to Islam and conscientious objector position with the Vietnam War did not sit well with the Greatest Generation and almost all older baby boomers.
But his style in the ring and in front of the cameras mesmerized many fans including me which brings me to my biggest regret as a sports fan...Ali-Frazier 2...I had tickets to the pay per view at Hara Arena but the feed failed across some USA markets and Hara was 1 of them. Mini riot ensued...so not only did we not get to see the fight but we weren't able to find the radio broadcast...pains me to this day..these 3 fights were big, big, spectacles in an emerging sports media world highlighted by first of their kind events.
It's been great to see the world grow to be so fond of him...RIP Muhammad "I am the Greatest" Ali
Certainly Ali was a lightning rod with his style...his conversion to Islam and conscientious objector position with the Vietnam War did not sit well with the Greatest Generation and almost all older baby boomers.
But his style in the ring and in front of the cameras mesmerized many fans including me which brings me to my biggest regret as a sports fan...Ali-Frazier 2...I had tickets to the pay per view at Hara Arena but the feed failed across some USA markets and Hara was 1 of them. Mini riot ensued...so not only did we not get to see the fight but we weren't able to find the radio broadcast...pains me to this day..these 3 fights were big, big, spectacles in an emerging sports media world highlighted by first of their kind events.
It's been great to see the world grow to be so fond of him...RIP Muhammad "I am the Greatest" Ali
