Before the start of the '76 Olympics, I'd had 160 amateur fights. I won 155 and lost five

It is wonderful. It truly is. It is the only thing that is real! It's you against me, it's challenging another guy's manhood. With gloves. Words cannot describe that feeling of being a man, of being a gladiator, of being a warrior. It's irreplaceable.

Boxing was the only career where I wouldn't have to start out at the bottom. I had a good resume.

In Italy, I had an Afro, and a lot of the kids came up and felt my hair. It really was funny. I wish I had understood Italian.

Generally, the more weight you put on, the less effective you are.

Everything you want to know about a fighter is in his eyes. The look in his eyes tells the truth.

When I turned pro, Muhammad Ali was laying back, and I was able to fill up an area that was empty.