When thinking of motivating sayings, our minds can think of many people that have produced incredible wisdom. Some are more lightweight, while others carry meanings so deep that they are on a whole other level. We believe Muhammad Ali’s quotes fall into the latter category. With his extraordinary feats both inside and outside the ring, Ali floated like a butterfly and stung like a bee when it mattered.
Muhammad Ali was an American professional boxer and an activist who became the personification of sportsmanship, athleticism, and being the best that a person can be. Muhammad's boxing career started as an accident. He was just a twelve-year-old kid fuming over his stolen bike when a police officer and boxing coach, John E. Martin, saw the kid. John told Ali that if he wanted to 'whup' the thieves, he'd better learn how to box. And once he did come for boxing lessons, he soon became a record-breaking sportsman.
One might wonder how you could apply the sayings of a boxer to ordinary life. In the heavyweight champion’s case, he had to go through many personal hardships to reach the top level. Which might make the quotes by Muhammad Ali hit home harder than ever.
There are a lot of famous and inspiring quotes from Muhammad Ali, some of them getting attention even outside of the sporting world. This just goes to show how powerful the fighter was—both physically and mentally.
So step into the ring and read through these motivating Muhammad Ali quotes. No matter what you’re going through, Ali’s words will instill in you the power to overcome any obstacle. Vote for your favorites and share the motivation with your friends and family!
#61
“I calculate that I took 20,000 punches, but I earned millions and kept a lot of it. I may talk slow, but my mind is OK.”
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#62
“I am the astronaut of boxing. Joe Louis and Dempsey were just jet pilots. I'm in a world of my own.”
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#63
“No one knows what to say in the loser’s locker room.”
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#64
“Champions are made from something they have deep inside them-a desire, a dream, a vision. They have to have the skill and the will. But the will must be stronger than the skill.”
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#65
“Hating people because of their color is wrong. And it doesn't matter which color does the hating. It’s just plain wrong.”
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#66
“I’ve wrestled with alligators. I’ve tussled with a whale. I did handcuffed lightning. And throw thunder in jail.”
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#67
“Not only do I knock ’em out, but I also pick them round.”
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#68
“We spend more time learning how to make a living than we do learning how to make a life.”
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#69
“Think well of all, be patient with all, and try to find the good in all.”
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#70
“I believe in the eye-for-an-eye business. I’m no cheek turner.”
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#71
“Why should they ask me to put on a uniform and go 10,000 miles from home and drop bombs and bullets on Brown people in Vietnam while so-called Negro people in Louisville are treated like dogs and denied simple human rights? No, I’m not going 10,000 miles from home to help murder and burn another poor nation simply to continue the domination of white slave masters of the darker people the world over. This is the day when such evils must come to an end. I have been warned that taking such a stand would cost me millions of dollars. But I have said it once and I will say it again. The real enemy of my people is here. I will not disgrace my religion, my people, or myself by becoming a tool to enslave those who are fighting for their own justice, freedom, and equality. If I thought the war was going to bring freedom and equality to 22 million of my people they wouldn’t have to draft me, I’d join tomorrow. I have nothing to lose by standing up for my beliefs. So I’ll go to jail, so what? We’ve been in jail for 400 years.”
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#72
“Life is so, so short. Bible says it’s like a vapor.”
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#73
“It’s lack of faith that makes people afraid of meeting challenges, and I believed in myself.”
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#74
“He who is not courageous enough to take risks will accomplish nothing in life.”
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#75
“The greatest victory in life is to rise above the material things that we once valued most.”
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#76
“I am America. I am the part you won’t recognize. But get used to me. Black, confident, cocky; my name, not yours; my religion, not yours; my goals, my own; get used to me.”
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#77
“When I won the Golden Gloves in 1960, that made me realize I had a chance. And when I won at the Olympics, that sealed it: I was the champ.”
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#78
“It’s in my blood to be around people while I was training.”
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#79
“People don’t realize what they had till it’s gone. Like President Kennedy, there was no one like him, the Beatles, and my man Elvis Presley. I was the Elvis of boxing.”
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#80
“I’ve made my share of mistakes along the way, but if I have changed even one life for the better, I haven’t lived in vain.”
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