There's never been a great fight without the writers taking on and finding an identity for it. That's probably what has happened boxing. Writers are not writing about us big boys anymore and I tell you right, however you feel, take something, find it, and use it because American needs something to read about.

All I've ever tried to tell anyone is that I'm not a black man or a white man or anything else. All I've ever been was an American.

My mother was watching on television and she doesn't want me to hurt anyone.

As bad as your situation may be, someone else always has it worse than you.

Sonny Liston stood up to me and actually made me give ground. No one has ever done that to me before or since.

The wealthy class often looks down on the poor as "those people." And deprived people view the rich as cold and heartless. The way to break down the barrier between the rich and poor is to asociate with each other and to help one another. Make a connection. If you can break down the barrier, it may pave the way to recovery for some person, a family, maybe an entire community.

My kids idea of a hard life is to live in a house with only one phone.