Known for an infectious personality and uncanny athletic ability, Muhammad Ali was the self-proclaimed, and then proven, greatest boxer in the world.
The former heavyweight champion won bouts in 29 different cities and 11 countries. With his international success, it can be easily forgotten that “The Greatest” holds a special place in Houston’s sports history.
On November 14, 1966, Ali shone in one of the most iconic fights of his career against Cleveland Williams in the Astrodome.
Being one of the most anticipated sporting events of the 1960s, a crowd of 35,460 people flocked to the “Eighth Wonder of the World” just over a year after its opening and made it the highest-attended fight in boxing history at the time.
It would later be called his best fight by some. Ali landed punch after punch, en route to a third-round knockout to move to 27-0 in his career.
The scorecards showed that Ali landed 46 power punches while Williams landed just 10 total punches in the entire fight. It was truly an unprecedented beatdown.
Ali’s signature footwork was on display like no one had seen before, leading to his trademark “Ali Shuffle” being born this night in Houston.
Three months later, Ali returned to the Astrodome to battle Ernie Terrell to bring his career record to 28-0. Terrell notably angered Ali prior to the fight by addressing Ali as Cassius Clay, the boxer’s birth name.
Ali repeatedly taunted Terrell with the question “What’s my name?” as he worked his way to a unanimous victory in 15 rounds. With more than 37,000 watchers, Houston once again set a boxing attendance record.
In 1971, Ali went on to win two more fights in the Astrodome against Jimmy Ellis in July and Buster Mathis in November.
One of the most storied aspects of Ali’s career occurred in 1967 however, when he refused to be drafted in the Vietnam War. When induction officials at the Military Entrance Processing Station announced his name, Ali did not budge.
Ali became one of the first public figures to openly speak out against his country’s involvement in a highly scrutinized war and also outright refuse service. It was the latter that got Federal District Judge Joe E. Ingraham granted Ali five years in prison and a $10,000 fine.
Even with a career record of 29-0, the world’s most famous athlete at the time was banned from boxing in the United States.
Ali was never forced to spend any time in prison thanks to appeals that eventually led to a unanimous Supreme Court decision to overturn the conviction. He reentered the ring three years later and defeated Jerry Quarry with technical knockout in the third round.
Houston will remember Ali both as a boxer who won four heavyweight fights in the city and as an individual determined to fight for what he believed at any cost.
